Russia holds military parade to mark Victory Day

Russia is capable of ensuring its security as "a real war has once again been unleashed against our motherland," Putin said.

MOSCOW, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Russia held a grand military parade in central Moscow's Red Square on Tuesday to commemorate the 78th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945.

In an address to troops and guests ahead of the annual event, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, "for us in Russia, the memory of the defenders of the motherland is sacred. We keep it in our hearts."

He paid tribute to the allied armies who bravely fought Nazism and honored the feat of Chinese soldiers in the battle against Japanese militarism.

The Russian leader led a minute of silence in memory of the Soviet soldiers who fell during the war.

"For Russia, there are no unfriendly, hostile peoples either in the West or in the East. Like the vast majority of people on the planet, we want to see a future of peace, freedom and stability," Putin stressed.

He denounced some Western elites for "provoking bloody conflicts and upheavals, sowing hatred" in order to "continue to dictate, to impose their will, rights, rules on others."

Russia is capable of ensuring its security as "a real war has once again been unleashed against our motherland," Putin said.

Before Putin's speech, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in a black open-top limousine reviewed the troops lining up on Red Square and wished them a happy Victory Day. The troops in full dress chanted "Hooray!" in reply.

More than 8,000 military personnel, including 530 soldiers of the special military operation, and 125 items of military hardware participated in the 47-minute ceremony. The traditional air show was canceled this year.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev watched the celebrations alongside Putin on the podium.

After the parade, Putin and the foreign leaders laid flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Alexander Garden outside the Kremlin wall.

Celebrations were held across Russia on Tuesday to mark the triumph over Nazi Germany, an integral part of World War II. The Soviet Union lost roughly 27 million people in the war, both soldiers and civilians, according to official statistics. ■