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Foreign leaders arrive in Moscow for Victory Day celebrations

Commemorations across Europe and Russia honor WWII veterans

Published 8 May, 2026 05:36 | Updated 8 May, 2026 22:34

Foreign leaders arrive in Moscow for Victory Day celebrations

Countries around the world are marking the 81st anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in World War II on May 8 and 9, paying tribute to the millions who gave their lives to defeat the Third Reich.

The Soviet Union bore the brunt of the war, losing an estimated 27 million people in what is known in Russia as the Great Patriotic War. Victory Day remains one of the country’s most important national holidays.

In Russia, Victory Day is celebrated on May 9 because Nazi Germany’s unconditional surrender was signed late on May 8 in Berlin – making it after midnight in Moscow. The annual military parade is set to take place in Red Square on Friday.

Commemorations in several Western European countries, including Germany, have been overshadowed by restrictions on Soviet and Russian symbols such as flags and St. George ribbons, introduced after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict. Moscow has condemned the bans as an attempt to erase the memory of the role of the USSR in defeating Nazism.

Despite the restrictions, people across Europe are continuing to lay flowers at Soviet war memorials and take part in ‘Immortal Regiment’ marches, carrying portraits of relatives who fought the Nazis during the deadliest conflict in human history.

Russia’s Defense Ministry earlier announced a two-day ceasefire for May 8-9 to coincide with the Victory Day commemorations and urged Ukraine to observe it as well. The ministry said on Friday that more than 260 Ukrainian drones had been intercepted over Russian territory overnight.

08 May 2026
22:30 GMT
Victory Day celebrations have begun in Russia’s easternmost regions, with a parade held in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky from 10am local time.
Around 900 people marched through the main square of the City of Military Glory, including servicemen from the Joint Command of Troops and Forces in northeast Russia, female military personnel, border guards, police and Emergencies Ministry staff, according to the Pacific Fleet.
An Immortal Regiment march is due to begin at noon local time on the city’s central street. Concerts, commemorative events, and themed venues will run throughout the day across Kamchatka, with the celebrations set to end in a fireworks display.
22:16 GMT
The Russian Embassy in Lithuania has held commemorative events for veterans and compatriots living in the country, with the Immortal Regiment and Garden of Memory events taking place on May 8 on the embassy grounds.
21:57 GMT
A Candle of Memory event has been held in Moldova, with participants lighting 1,418 candles to symbolize each day of the Great Patriotic War. The commemorative event, first launched years ago in the autonomous region of Gagauzia, has since taken on a nationwide scale and is now held in several cities.
In Chisinau, dozens gathered at the Eternity Memorial Complex, including families with children, civic activists, and supporters of the Party of Communists.
“Every year, we light 1,418 candles in memory of the 1,418 days and nights of the war,” PCRM leader Vladimir Voronin said. “It is hard to imagine even a single moment at war, yet the Soviet people managed to defeat fascism.”
21:29 GMT
Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, Sergey Mikayev, and Andrey Fedyaev have sent greetings from aboard the International Space Station, which was decorated with the Victory Banner.
“From aboard the International Space Station, we can clearly see how beautiful and fragile our planet is, and how important it is to preserve what our ancestors defended,” they said.
“Victory in the Great Patriotic War is an example of the courage, resilience, and heroism shown to the whole world by the citizens of our country. Thanks to them, today we can dream, explore space, and build the future,” the cosmonauts added, urging their compatriots to cherish what previous generations preserved.
20:55 GMT
“No nation should forget its history,” Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has said during a meeting with Putin.
“I am here to tell our younger generation that their grandfathers were heroes, this is the most important thing, we must not forget this.”
20:39 GMT
If you’re just joining us:
- Trump has announced on Truth Social that a three-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine will take place on May 9-11, saying it will halt “all kinetic activity” and include a swap of 1,000 prisoners from each side.
- Foreign leaders have arrived in Moscow to attend the Victory Day parade on Red Square on May 9. Among them Sinisa Karan, the president of Republika Srpska, the Serb-majority entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Laotian President Thongloun Sisoulith, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
Read more
Victory Day commemorations take place across Africa (PHOTOS, VIDEO)
- Commemorations were held around the world, from the US and Europe to Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and China.
  In Germany, a coalition of approximately 20 civil society and peace organizations gathered in Berlin’s eastern district of Karlshorst to commemorate the anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe, highlighting the Soviet Union’s decisive role in the defeat of Nazi Germany.
- ‘Immortal Regiment’ marches honoring World War II veterans have been held in the Cuban capital of Havana, in Hanoi (Vietnam), Pretoria (South Africa), and Paris (France).
- A video conference with World War II veterans from Israel, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, and Latvia has been held at the St. Petersburg Stock Exchange as part of the Russian-British veteran project ‘The Last Soldier of World War II’.
20:22 GMT
Vladimir Putin is to have a whole marathon of bilateral meetings on May 9, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.

“More than 10,” he stressed, speaking to journalists.
20:08 GMT
READ MORE: Trump declares three-day Russia-Ukraine ceasefire

Zelensky has said Kiev has agreed to a ceasefire with Russia from May 9 to 11 and to a prisoner swap on a “1,000 for 1,000” basis, adding that the arrangement was reached “through US mediation.” Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov said earlier that Moscow had backed US President Donald Trump’s initiative for a May 9-11 truce and a POW exchange with Kiev on the same formula.
19:59 GMT
READ MORE: Kiev targets Russia with drones after Moscow’s Victory Day ceasefire goes into effect

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said Russia “does not need permission” to hold a Victory Day parade in Moscow, commenting on a ‘decree’ published on the Ukrainian presidential website that purported to “allow” a May 9 parade in the Russian capital. The document states that Kiev temporarily excludes Red Square from its plan for the use of Ukrainian weapons. “Woe to anyone who tries to mock Victory Day. That is their misfortune,” Peskov said.
On Thursday, Zelensky appeared to issue a thinly veiled threat to Moscow, saying he would not “recommend” that foreign dignitaries attend the parade.
19:29 GMT
Putin is receiving Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in the Kremlin ahead of Victory Day. The Russian president thanked his Kazakh counterpart for coming to Moscow “despite everything that is happening around this event,” saying his presence on May 9 was “the best proof” of the current level of relations between the two countries.
Russian President Vladimir Putin with his Kazakh counterpart Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Moscow, May 8, 2026. © Sputnik / Kirill Zykov

08 May 2026
04:20 GMT
Germany’s ban on Soviet and Russian Victory Day symbols at major World War II memorials in Berlin came into force on Friday and will remain in place until 10 PM on May 9. The restrictions apply to the Soviet memorials in Tiergarten, Treptower Park and Schoenholzer Heide and prohibit the display of Russian, Soviet, Belarusian flags, military uniforms and insignia, including St. George ribbons. Russian military songs and marches are also banned, although some exemptions apply to diplomats and WWII veterans.
Russia has repeatedly condemned efforts across Europe to restrict Soviet-era symbols during WWII commemorations, accusing Western governments of trying to rewrite history and downplay the USSR’s role in defeating Nazi Germany. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said last month that some in the West appear to see the Soviet victory in WWII as an “accident” they now seek to “rectify.”
04:30 GMT
German authorities are discriminating against Russia by banning Soviet flags and St. George ribbons during Victory Day commemorations, former European Parliament member and Alternative for Germany politician Gunnar Beck has told RT.
READ MORE: German ban on Soviet WWII symbols is ‘discrimination’ – former MEP (VIDEO)

Beck argued that Berlin had not imposed similar restrictions on symbols linked to other Allied powers that defeated Nazi Germany in World War II. “There is absolutely no basis for such discrimination against Russia,” he said, stressing that the Soviet Union had suffered the highest casualties and made the “greatest single contribution” to defeating Nazism.
04:34 GMT
Russia’s embassy in Berlin condemned the restrictions on Soviet and Russian Victory Day symbols at WWII memorials as “absurd and cynical,” arguing they were aimed at preventing descendants of Soviet soldiers and visitors from properly commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany.
Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused German Chancellor Friedrich Merz of bringing “shame” on the country over the restrictions.
Despite the ban, commemorative events, including marches by the “Immortal Regiment” – a public procession in which participants carry portraits of relatives who fought against Nazi Germany in World War II – are scheduled across Germany this week. Organizers said the Berlin procession on May 9 would proceed under the imposed limitations.
05:01 GMT
The administration of US President Donald Trump had “fundamentally changed” Washington’s attitude toward Victory Day commemorations, Russia’s ambassador to the US, Aleksandr Darchiev, has said. He noting that the “Immortal Regiment” marches had been held in downtown Washington for the past two years.
Speaking at a reception at the Russian embassy in Washington marking the 81st anniversary of the Soviet victory in World War II, Darchiev said representatives of the White House and the State Department attended the event. He added that during a recent phone call, the Russian and US presidents had highlighted the importance of the wartime alliance between the Soviet Union and the United States.
People taking part in an ‘Immortal Regiment’ march in Washington. © Russian Embassy in the US
05:32 GMT
Residents of the Baltic states are expected to mark Victory Day by laying flowers on empty lawns and former memorial sites due to restrictions imposed on Soviet war monuments, activist Maksim Reva told RIA Novosti on Thursday.
Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have accelerated the removal of Soviet-era WWII monuments and memorials, arguing they symbolize Soviet occupation, while Moscow has condemned the move as an attempt to erase the Soviet role in defeating Nazi Germany.
Reva said people in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania continue to visit the locations of removed WWII memorials despite official bans and police monitoring. He recalled that residents in the Estonian city of Narva last year placed flowers in the grass where a Soviet T-34 tank monument once stood, while similar commemorations took place in Riga.
06:04 GMT
Some 59% of people polled in Russia consider Victory Day the country’s most important holiday, according to a study published by the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VTSIOM) earlier this week.
Eight decades after the conclusion of the world’s deadliest conflict, reflections on triumph in the Great Patriotic War “continue to unite generations, having become a shared collective memory. The vast majority of our fellow citizens are convinced that May 9 represents the greatest victory in Russia’s entire history,” the pollster noted.
The Motherland Calls monument is illuminated in the colors of the Russian flag during the Light of the Great Victory show on Mamayev Kurgan memorial complex ahead of Victory Day marking the 81st anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Volgograd, Russia. © Sputnik / Kirill Braga
06:38 GMT
“Immortal Regiment” marches and other Victory Day commemorative events are already underway in a number of countries ahead of the 81st anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
“Hundreds of people carrying portraits of their heroic ancestors” have marched through “Washington D.C., New York City, Geneva, Kinshasa, Tokyo, and Kuwait City,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said during a weekly press briefing on Thursday.
Zakharova added that Russian diplomats abroad are “congratulating veterans, paying tribute to the feat of Soviet soldiers by laying flowers at memorials and graves of those who fell liberating Europe, taking part in Immortal Regiment marches with portraits of their ancestors,” as well as organizing “the St George Ribbon and Garden of Memory campaigns.”
She said “solemn receptions will be held at Russian missions abroad with the participation of compatriots, friends of our country, and all those who remember and honour the feat of the Soviet people.”
06:45 GMT
The Austrian authorities have refused to permit a tree-planting ceremony on May 9 commemorating the victims of the Mauthausen Nazi concentration camp, the organizers of the ‘Garden of Memory’ campaign have said.
The event at the Mauthausen Memorial has been preliminary rescheduled for June 22, when Russia marks the Day of Remembrance and Mourning, they told Tass. On June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union without a declaration of war, instigating what Russians now remember as the Great Patriotic War.
Some 30,000 Soviet POWs and civilians died during the Second World War at the Mauthausen Nazi concentration camp, located 20 km east of the Austrian city of Linz.
More than 160 million trees have been planted in 101 countries as part of the ‘Garden of Memory’ campaign, initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2020.
FILE PHOTO: The former Nazi concentration camp Mauthausen in Austria. © Sputnik / Vladimir Fedorenko
07:02 GMT
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will be among the top officials attending the Victory Day parade on Red Square and other events in Moscow on May 9, commemorating the 81st anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany, the Belarusian leader’s office has said in a statement.
Lukashenko will also hold talks with Vladimir Putin, who invited him to the Russian capital, discussing bilateral relations and international issues, the statement read.
The president will return home the same day to take part in Victory Day events in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, it added.
07:22 GMT
Additional measures to protect Russian President Vladimir Putin have been implemented in response to Vladimir Zelensky’s threat to target the Victory Day parade with drones, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
When asked by journalists if the president’s security is being beefed up, Peskov replied, “undoubtedly.”
Putin is scheduled to attend the parade on Red Square on May 9 alongside the leaders of Slovakia, Malaysia, Belarus and other countries.
Russian authorities announced last month that the parade will be on a smaller scale than in 2025, when the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany was celebrated, and will not include tanks or other military hardware. Peskov subsequently attributed the decision to the Ukrainian “terrorist threat.”