World leaders mark the 77th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day while war rages in Ukraine
ADVERTISEMENTOn Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron commemorated the 77th anniversary of the Allied victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.
The ceremony, which took place in Paris, held particularly significance amid the ongoing war in Ukraine and ahead of Russia's annual military parade in Moscow.
Meanwhile, Germany's Bundestag President Bärbel Bas arrived in Kyiv to meet President Zelenskyy, and to attend a memorial event honoring the anniversary of the end of World War II.
Ahead of Russia's Victory Day celebrations, state media reported that Vladimir Putin praised the people of Ukraine for what he said was their continued fight against Nazism.
“The Russian leader noted that, in his words, our servicemen, just like their ancestors, are fighting together to liberate their soil from the Nazi filth, and expressed his certainty that victory will be our, just like in 1945. Vladimir Putin underlined that today the common duty is to avoid the spread of Nazism," said the Rossiya 24 news presenter.
Final Victory Day rehearsals took place in Moscow on Saturday.
To commemorate what Russia calls the Great Patriotic War, thousands of soldiers, tanks and armoured vehicles are set to parade across the capital's Red Square.