- No Russian military equipment was on display.
- Putin invokes Soviet victory to rally support for the army.
- Ukraine and Russia exchange drone attacks overnight.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that his soldiers in Ukraine were fighting an “aggressive force” backed by all of NATO and described his war goals as “just,” in a combative speech at the annual Victory Day parade in Red Square.
Putin has made the memory of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II a central narrative of his 25 years in rule, and authorities often celebrate the parade with pomp and grandeur.
But a series of far-reaching Ukrainian attacks in recent weeks led the Kremlin to step up security measures and scale back this year's celebrations.
The parade was greatly reduced compared to previous years, with no military equipment on display for the first time in nearly two decades and only a handful of foreign dignitaries attending, most of them leaders of Russia's close allies.
Both Moscow and kyiv agreed to respect a three-day ceasefire during the event, following a last-minute call from US President Donald Trump. Moscow had threatened a “massive” attack on central kyiv if Ukraine interrupted the proceedings.
In a speech during the parade, attended by Russian military units and North Korean soldiers, Putin invoked the Soviet victory to rally support for his army in Ukraine.
“The great feat of the generation of victors inspires the soldiers who today carry out the objectives of the special military operation,” Putin said.
“They face an aggressive force armed and supported by the entire NATO bloc. And despite this, our heroes continue forward,” he said.
“I firmly believe that our cause is just,” he later added.
Three-day ceasefire
After two failed truce attempts this week by Russia and Ukraine, Trump announced on Friday that a three-day ceasefire between the two sides would take effect starting May 9.
“Hopefully, this is the beginning of the end of a very long, deadly and hard-fought war,” Trump posted on his Truth Social network, adding that the ceasefire would be accompanied by a prisoner exchange.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a decree on Friday ordering the Ukrainian military not to attack the parade and in a separate statement confirmed that his government would respect the ceasefire to allow the exchange of 1,000 detainees from each side in the conflict.
“Red Square is less important to us than the lives of Ukrainian prisoners who can be returned to their homes,” Zelensky said, referring to the historic site in the Russian capital where the annual event is held.
Both the Ukrainian air force and the Russian Defense Ministry reported fewer drone strikes overnight.
Now in its fifth year, the war has killed hundreds of thousands of people and has become the deadliest war in Europe since World War II.
US-brokered talks to end the fighting have shown little progress since February, when Washington shifted focus to its war against Iran.
Before Trump's announcement on Friday, Zelensky had opposed the idea of a truce over the parade and warned Moscow's allies not to attend.
Russia had threatened a massive attack on the heart of kyiv if Ukraine disrupted the commemoration and urged foreign diplomats to leave the Ukrainian capital before the event.
Security was tight in the capital before the parade and AFP journalists saw the streets empty.
The mobile Internet connection was also interrupted.
Only the leaders of Belarus, Malaysia and Laos, as well as Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, would attend, in contrast to high-profile visitors, including China's Xi Jinping, during last year's event.
Zelensky on Friday expressed hope that US envoys will visit Ukraine in the coming weeks to restart talks on ending the war.
