How Putin uses the USSR’s victory in World War II to rally support for him and the war in Ukraine

‘A crime against the memory of those who died’ Meduza’s Russian-language readers on what Victory Day means to them amid Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine

On May 9, Russia marks Victory Day — the anniversary of the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. But as it has for the past three years, the country’s own war of aggression against Ukraine casts a long shadow over the celebrations. Ahead of the holiday, Meduza invited its Russian-language readers to share their thoughts on a holiday shaped by war and propaganda that now evokes mixed emotions for many. What follows is a selectio…

Victory Day has been a good day for Vladimir Putin

Of course, Putin used this as an opportunity to equate the Great Patriotic War with his imperial war in Ukraine.

Don't Mention The (Ukraine) War: How Putin Celebrated WWII Victory Day

Putin’s Victory Day speech on Red Square was one of the shortest in years, maybe ever. It was heavy on the usual tropes: the nobility of the Soviet sacrifice in helping to defeat Nazi Germany. But light on a more current conflict that is transforming Russian society: His war on Ukraine.

On May 9, Russia celebrates its victory over Germany. Putin takes the opportunity to demonstrate his power and now draws on children.

The growth of the meaning and message of May 9th came with the propaganda of Vladimir Putin's imperialist ambitions, and now May 9th is also a day of threats, notes Raul Rebane in Vikerraadio's daily commentary.

The war of Ukraine is at the bottom of the commemoration of the 80s of the victory over Nazi Germany and the 25s of the Russian president's power, who looks to the West as an enemy in his own history