Ukraine war live updates: ‘Real war is being waged against our Motherland,’ Putin says at Russia’s Victory Day military parade

Russia has been celebrating Victory Day today, with military parades and events around the country, albeit on a smaller-scale than in previous years.

Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the crowds in Red Square in Moscow, claiming that a “real war” was being waged against Russia and that the country had to fight for its future.

Russia launched an unprovoked invasion of Ukraine 15 months ago but has portrayed its so-called “special military operation” there as a necessity, claiming baselessly that it faced an existential threat from Ukraine and the West.

Here’s more: Russia’s Victory Day in pictures: Putin watches on during scaled-back parade

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov claimed Tuesday that the U.S. is attempting to put “pressure and threats” on Russia in the case of detained U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich.

Gershkovich, a correspondent with the Wall Street Journal, was arrested in Russia in March and accused of espionage. He and the newspaper deny the charges.

“The dialogue involves the search for some kind of solutions. From the American side, we see only attempts to pushing, pressure and threats. There can be no dialogue,” Ryabkov said, according to comments reported by state news agency Tass and translated by NBC.

He did not detail what form any pressure was taking.

Ryabkov said Russian authorities were still considering U.S. applications for consular visits to Gershkovich. The U.S. State Department said last month that Russia had not allowed U.S. consular officials access to Gershkovich since he was detained, in violation of international law.

— Holly Ellyatt

The European Union must not be intimidated by Moscow’s show-casing of military power but continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes, Germany Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday as Russia marked Victory Day with a parade.

“2,200 kilometres northeast from here, (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is parading his soldiers, tanks and missiles today,” Scholz told lawmakers in a speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, according to prepared remarks.

“We must not be intimidated by such power plays! Let’s remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine – for as long as it takes!”

— Reuters

Here’s the list of foreign leaders attending the Victory Day Parade in Moscow today, compiled by NBC’s Tatyana Chistikova. She counted seven leaders of former Soviet republics (there were 15 Soviet republics in the Soviet Union, including Russia) in attendance today. They are:

— President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov

— President of Kazakhstan Kasymzhomart Tokayev

— Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan

— President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon

— President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev

— President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko

— President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov

Technically, the only other leader of a post-Soviet state that is considered “friendly” to Russia who did not attend was Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, she noted. That’s because his father Heydar Aliyev is celebrating his 100th birthday in Azerbaijan.

Other former Soviet republics include Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. The first three are now in the European Union; Ukraine wishes to join the EU and NATO; and a high degree of insecurity is pervading Moldova and Georgia amid fears that they could also be in Moscow’s sights as it seemingly looks to reaffirm its power and influence over its former Soviet neighbors.

— Holly Ellyatt

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a speech as Moscow’s annual Victory Day parade got underway in Moscow that “real war is being waged against our Motherland.”

More than 10,000 people and 125 units of weapons and military equipment are set to be involved in the procession through Red Square in the Russian capital on Tuesday. The event commemorates the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.

The Russian president gave a 10-minute speech in which he said Russia wanted a peaceful future but that “Western elites” were “sowing hatred and Russophobia” and that Ukrainians had become “hostages to a state coup” and the ambitions of the West.

He said the West had forgotten the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany and that Russia was currently fighting for its own survival.

“Today, civilization is again at a decisive turning point. A real war has been unleashed against our homeland. We have repulsed international terrorism, we will protect the inhabitants of Donbas, we will ensure our security,” Putin said, according to comments translated by Reuters.

Putin and other heads of state from former Soviet states, as well as top military personnel and war veterans, are attending the event today.

— Holly Ellyatt

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after a new wave of Russian air strikes on the capital.

The trip falls on the European Union’s Europe Day, which Ukraine adopted as its own on Monday, underlining its ambition to join Western institutions after applying to join the EU last year following Russia’s invasion.

“Good to be back in Kyiv. “Where the values we hold dear are defended everyday,” von der Leyen said on Twitter alongside a photograph of her arriving by train.

She began her highly symbolic trip shortly before Russian President Vladimir Putin marked the Soviet victory in World War Two with an annual military parade and speech on Moscow’s Red Square.

Zelenskyy acted on Sunday to institute May 8 as the day Kyiv commemorates the World War Two victory — meaning it will no longer mark it on the same day as Moscow, Ukraine’s former Soviet master.

“I welcome President Zelenskyy’s decision to make 9 May Europe Day also here in Ukraine,” von der Leyen tweeted.

Europe Day honours a 1950 French declaration that led to the founding of the body that became the EU.

The European Commission, the EU executive, took the unusual step of publicly announcing her trip the day before she travelled. Visiting dignitaries usually keep wartime trips Ukraine secret for security reasons.

— Reuters

Ukraine’s capital Kyiv was targeted by another Russian missile strike on Monday. The head of the city’s military administration noted that it’s the fifth time the capital has been attacked since the start of May.

Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv City Military Administration, said on Telegram that it was no accident that the latest attack came on the eve of Moscow’s annual Victory Day parade, saying Russia was using its “sacred date” to then “try to kill as many civilians as possible on this day.”

Monday night’s attack was carried out by four Tu-95MS strategic bombers from the Caspian Sea region, Popko said, but he noted that the cruise missiles launched by the fighter jets had not reached their targets.

“The anti-aircraft defense of the capital worked perfectly again! According to preliminary information, about one and a half dozen enemy air targets were detected and destroyed in the airspace around Kyiv,” Popko said. No one was injured in the attack, preliminary information suggested, he said.

“Kyiv stood up again and will stand up in the future,” Popko said.

Kyiv’s Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said that during the attack on Kyiv, “a fragment of a downed rocket fell on a private yard in Holosiivskyi district of the capital. The burning wreckage was extinguished. There were no casualties or damage.” Explosives experts, rescuers and police are still working on the scene, he said Tuesday morning.

CNBC was unable to immediately verify the information in the posts but, in recent days, Kyiv has been targeted in several attacks after a relative lull in several months. Early Monday morning, Kyiv was struck by Iranian-made “Shahed” drones.

Ukrainian Air Defense forces destroyed 35 “Shahed” drones used in strikes on the capital, the forces’ General Staff said, but debris from the interceptions damaged buildings and cars and injured at least five people, according to local authorities.

— Holly Ellyatt, Natasha Turak

Despite being one of the most important dates in Russia’s calendar, Victory Day in Russia has not been what it was for a number of years now.

The Covid-19 pandemic and now the ongoing war with Ukraine have sorely affected annual commemorations of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany.

This year, Russia’s growing domestic insecurities as a result of the war — and an uptick on attacks on its own soil — is also marring the commemorative event, with at least six regions (including Crimea) and 21 cities canceling their Victory Day parades, Britain’s Ministry of Defense noted last Friday.

Moscow’s Victory Day celebration is likely to be held on a much smaller scale this year and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s reception following the parade will not go ahead. The reception was last held in 2019, the U.K. noted.

The traditional “March of the Immortal Regiment,” in which family members display photographs of dead veterans of World War II, has also been canceled. That follows the recent cancellation of the Russian-hosted International Army Games, the U.K. noted.

The timing of a recent alleged drone strike on the Kremlin a few days before Victory Day showed, the ministry said, “Russia’s increasing vulnerability to such attacks and has almost certainly raised the threat perception of the Russian leadership over the Victory Day events.”

“The potential for protests and discontent over the Ukraine war are also likely to have influenced the calculus of the Russian leadership.”

The Kremlin said all possible security measures were in place ahead of this year’s Victory Day and that Putin will watch the parade on Red Square along with the leaders of other former Soviet republics that now form part of a bloc known as the Commonwealth of Independent States.

The heads of state will then lay flowers and have an informal breakfast together, Peskov said. The parade is due to start at 10a.m. Moscow time. Putin is due to give a speech at the event and is also expected to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

— Holly Ellyatt

Russia could intensify its military aggression against Ukraine today, given the backdrop of Victory Day and an uptick in attacks on the country in recent weeks ahead of Kyiv’s expected counteroffensive.

The Kremlin has already been using security concerns as a justification for its “special military operation” in Ukraine, with Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov claiming that “the nature of the Kyiv regime requires that Moscow be vigilant and reaffirms that President Putin made the right decision to start the special military operation,” Tass reported.

Peskov repeated baseless claims that Russia was still dealing the “manifestations of Nazism in one way or another.”

As it looked to bolster public support for its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has repeatedly stated that the government in Ukraine is a Nazi regime, despite the fact that Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is Jewish.

Ukraine and its Western allies have repeatedly rejected Russia’s claims as nonsensical and part of a wider, deeper campaign to spread misinformation about the invasion and its motives for launching it.

— Holly Ellyatt

All eyes are on Russia’s Victory Day parade today that marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in 1945.

Moscow usually uses the large-scale parade in Moscow to show off its military hardware as Russian President Vladimir Putin and his military generals, as well as other guest heads of state, look on.

This year will be different, however, with the ongoing war in Ukraine involving much of Russia’s military personnel and hardware. Security concerns are high on the Kremlin’s watchlist this year, particularly following a recent alleged drone attack on the Kremlin.

Six regions, including Crimea, and 21 cities across Russia have canceled their May 9 parades in light of security concerns, Britain’s Ministry of Defense said Monday.

Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said stringent security measures were in place ahead of Victory Day.

“All the necessary measures are being taken to ensure security, especially when foreign guests, our head of state will be in attendance. Everything that is required by law is being done to that end,” he told Russia’s Channel One television network on Monday, according to state news agency Tass.

— Holly Ellyatt

Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin ditched his threat from last week to leave the war-ravaged city of Bakhmut in light of insufficient ammunition supplies.

The private military firm’s boss wrote on Telegram Sunday,: “Overnight we received a combat order, for the first time in all this time. We have been promised as much ammunition and weapons as we need to continue further operations. We have been promised that everything needed to prevent the enemy from cutting us off will be deployed on the flank.”

Prigozhin on Friday released a video in which he, surrounded by dead bodies of Wagner fighters, blasted Russian Defense Ministry chiefs for failing to supply his combatants with the ammunition they needed to fight in Bakhmut, an eastern Ukrainian city that’s been the site of the war’s longest and bloodiest battle so far.

— Natasha Turak

Civilians and city officials took stock of damage from the wreckage of Russian drones shot down over Kyiv early Monday morning.

Ukrainian Air Defense forces destroyed all 35 Iranian “Shahed” drones used in Russia’s strikes on the capital, the forces’ General Staff said, but debris from the interceptions damaged buildings and cars and injured at least five people, according to local authorities.

— Getty Images

Moscow is going ahead with Victory Day celebrations on Tuesday, which include a major military parade, to celebrate the anniversary of the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945.

This year’s commemoration follows a turbulent week that saw an alleged attempted drone attack on the Kremlin, which Moscow blames on Ukraine and Washington, but that Kyiv argues was staged by Russia to escalate the war.

A Moscow city official was quoted by the Guardian as describing “a nervousness that I have never seen before” in the wake of the drone attack, but then adding that the Victory Day parade must still take place.

At least six regions in Russia have canceled their Victory Day celebrations.

The Guardian writes, “Tellingly, on Friday, Putin took the unusual step to discuss the preparations for the 9 May Victory Day parade in a meeting with his security council, composed of Russia’s top state officials and heads of defence and security agencies … Even before the drone attack on the Kremlin, there were signs of unease among the Russian leadership over the celebrations amid fears of Ukrainian strikes.”

— Natasha Turak