Feeling of Joy and Sorrow, Pride and Gratitude: Parade in Honor of 80th Anniversary of Victory Took Place on Red Square

A parade was held on the Red Square in Moscow to mark the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War.

Along with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the event was attended by leaders of the Commonwealth countries: Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, President of Belarus Viktor Lukashenko, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov, President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev and other state leaders.

In total, 27 foreign heads of state came to the celebration. The event was also attended by Speaker of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Valentina Matvienko and Chair of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Vladimir Volodin.

Before the parade, Vladimir Putin delivered a congratulatory speech. According to the President, this holiday unites people with feelings of joy, sorrow, pride and gratitude, and admiration for the generation that crushed Nazism and won freedom and peace for all mankind at the cost of millions of lives.

“Our fathers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers saved the Motherland. They bequeathed to us the task of protecting the Motherland, of being united and of firmly defending our national interests, our thousand-year history, our culture and our traditional values. Everything that is dear and sacred to us,” said Vladimir Putin.

The head of state added that the great feat of people of different nationalities will forever be etched in world history.

“We will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with veterans, sharing their sincere love for the Motherland and determination to defend it, as well as their commitment to the values of humanism and justice. Let us cherish these traditions and this great heritage in our hearts and pass them on to future generations,” the President concluded.

More than 11,500 military personnel from Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Egypt, China, Laos, Mongolia and Myanmar marched across Red Square.

Leaders of the Commonwealth and other states laid flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Alexander Garden and honoured the memory of those who had fallen with a minute’s silence.