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He addressed thousands of soldiers and veterans on Red Square at the start of the annual parade, during which various military teams marched through the streets of Moscow.
“The Soviet people kept their sacred oath, defended their homeland and liberated European countries from the Black Death,” Putin told the crowd.
“Russia has consistently upheld international law. Together, we will firmly defend our national interests to ensure the safety of our people,” he said.
The Russian leader also condemned, he said, the “slow return” of the ideologies of a time when “the slogans of race and national supremacy, anti-Semitism and Russophobia had become more cynical than ever.”
The state news agency RIA Novosti previously announced that more than 12,000 people will take part in Sunday’s parade in the Russian capital. military personnel, as well as about 190 pieces of military equipment and 76 airplanes and helicopters.
Victory Day parades were also held on Sunday in dozens of cities across the country.
Over the course of two decades under Putin’s rule, this holiday has become increasingly important as an opportunity to demonstrate Russia’s military might.
A poll this week by the pro-Kremlin Institute for Public Opinion Research VTsIOM found that 69 percent. Russians consider May 9 as the most important holiday of the year.
A third of those surveyed said they would attend the celebratory events and a fifth said they would watch the events on television.
