In Volgograd, the parade in honor of the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad takes place.
The bloody battle – one of the most decisive for the outcome of the former Soviet Union’s war against Nazi Germany – is remembered with the flag of Russia and the banners of victory, “carried in the square of fallen fighters.”
Soldiers march in the anniversary parade, where President Putin is expected to be present. In the Russian propaganda video, the start of the celebrations this morning: a high-profile demonstration, to be held in the southern city as the Kremlin is gathering strength for its offensive in Ukraine, launched almost a year ago to ” denazify” its neighbour, Ukraine: whose soldiers fought alongside Russia against Nazi Germany.
Putin is expected to travel to Volgograd, formerly known as Stalingrad, to take part in a wreath-laying ceremony at a war memorial and speak at a concert, the Kremlin said.
The battle lasted more than six months, ending with the surrender of German troops on February 2, 1943, after more than a million people were killed.
