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April 30, 1945 was the day of the liberation of the Slovak sister city from the Nazi invaders.

On Friday,​ April 28, commemoratory events dedicated to the 78th anniversary of liberation from occupation took place in the city. They were attended by representatives of the city, the region, the Slovak army and police, the Union of Anti-Fascist Activists, students of Žilina schools, and residents.

One of the events took place at the Military Cemetery of Soviet Soldiers near Žilina. Here are buried 1907 soldiers who died during the liberation of northern Slovakia, including Žilina. Several Soviet soldiers called up from the Krasnoyarsk Region rest in that cemetery. Near the monument was laid a bouquet of flowers from the residents of Krasnoyarsk.​ The person responsible for making that possible was Pavol Vitek, ​a Slovak businessman and writer, as well as a dear friend of the city.

The town of Žilina was liberated on the morning of 30 April 1945 after three weeks of heavy fighting in the surrounding mountainous area.

Today it is the centre of industry, education and culture in the northwestern part of the Slovak Republic, inhabited by about 80000 people.