MOSCOW (dpa-AFX) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has met with criticism with his decree on his “approval” of the Russian military parade on Red Square in Moscow. “We don’t need permission from anyone,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state television before the start of the annual May 9 parade to mark the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. “Woe to anyone who tries to make fun of Victory Day and make such stupid jokes,” he said.
On Friday, Zelensky published a decree “On holding a parade in Moscow” with the coordinates of Red Square, which should be exempt from Ukrainian attacks. The decree was accompanied by a ceasefire brokered by US President Donald Trump, which is supposed to last until May 11th. As of morning, there were no official reports of violations of this agreement – Russia has been waging its war of aggression against Ukraine for more than four years.
Peskov described it as a “great misfortune” for Zelensky that he behaved this way. Victory Day is celebrated in many parts of the former Soviet Union as a “day of pride with tears in our eyes.” The country lost more than 27 million people when Europe was liberated from the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler. “We don’t need anyone’s permission to be proud of our Victory Day,” Peskov said.
After massive Ukrainian drone attacks in recent days and weeks, the Russian leadership decided to hold the parade this year without military technology. Kremlin chief Putin attends the march with thousands of soldiers – and gives a speech. The security situation in Moscow, as in other cities in the country where there are also victory parades, is extremely tense. In many places, mobile internet is blocked for the population.
The surrender of the German Wehrmacht on May 8, 1945 in Berlin took place in the early hours of May 9 in Moscow. That’s why Russia always celebrates Victory Day on this date./mau/DP/zb
