Russia holds Victory Day parade marking the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany

Russia's Victory Day parade showcases global power, alliances, and defiance against the West amid Ukraine conflict.

Russia on Friday (May 9, 2025) celebrated the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, as President Vladimir Putin presided over a massive parade of tanks, missiles and troops through Red Square and welcomed over two dozen world leaders — the most since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine.

Victory Day, which Russia marks on May 9, is the country’s most important secular holiday. The parade and other festivities underline Moscow’s efforts to project its global power and cement the alliances it has forged while seeking a counterbalance to the West amid the conflict in Ukraine that is grinding through a fourth year.

Friday’s parade was the largest since Russia sent troops into Ukraine in 2022 and drew the most global leaders to Moscow in a decade, including high-profile guests like Chinese President Xi Jinping, who sat next to Mr. Putin, and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Their attendance underscored how Putin has tried to emphasize the failure of the West to turn Russia into a global pariah.

“It’s again showing that Russia is not isolated, that Russia is seen as a very legitimate victorious nation that is among victors in World War II,” said Alexander Gabuev, director of Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre.

"Russia is standing tall among the so-called global majority,” Mr. Gabuev said, adding that the attendance of Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico showed that “Russia has allies even within the Western camp” and marked a major public relations victory for Mr. Putin.

World War II is a rare event in the nation’s divisive history under Communist rule that is revered by all political groups, and the Kremlin has used that sentiment to encourage national pride and underline Russia’s position as a global power.

The Soviet Union lost 27 million people in what it calls the Great Patriotic War in 1941-45, an enormous sacrifice that left a deep scar in the national psyche.