"The great feat of the generation of victors inspires the soldiers carrying out the goals of the special military operation today", Putin said. He argued that the Russian military was facing a force armed and supported by the entire NATO. "And despite this, our heroes move forward", he said.
This year's Victory Day celebrations were considerably more modest than in previous years. For the first time in nearly two decades, tanks and other heavy military equipment that had traditionally formed part of displays of Russian military might were absent from Red Square.
Soldiers and sailors, including servicemen who had fought in Ukraine, marched across the square as fighter jets flew over the Kremlin. Putin laid flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier after his speech.
Moscow had put in place additional security measures in response to fears of Ukrainian attacks, following a series of drone strikes on energy infrastructure and other targets in recent months. Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov described the occasion as "business as usual", except for the absence of military equipment.
Seats of Honor
The seating arrangement on the podium also attracted attention. For the first time, Leonid Ryzhov, a veteran of the war in Ukraine and a former commander of a motorized artillery brigade that fought in the Luhansk region during the early months of the invasion, sat beside Putin.
On the other side sat Second World War veteran Svet Turunov. The Kremlin thus placed side by side, symbolically, a veteran of the fighting against Nazi Germany and a soldier from the war in Ukraine.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and his son Nikolai also sat near Putin, as did Sergei Shoigu, the former defense minister and current Russian Security Council secretary, whose name has surfaced in Western media speculation about possible power struggles within the Kremlin. Moscow has rejected these claims.
Gestures of Peace
The parade took place during a three-day ceasefire agreed to by both Moscow and Kyiv following an appeal by US President Donald Trump, who also secured an agreement to exchange thousands of prisoners of war. Trump said he would like to see a "big extension" of the ceasefire and described the conflict as the worst war in terms of casualties since the Second World War.
Russia warned that any Ukrainian attempt to disrupt the celebrations would be met with a large-scale missile attack on Kyiv. Zelensky responded with characteristic irony, saying he would "allow" the parade to proceed and that Ukrainian weapons would not be aimed at Red Square.
Putin also hosted a gala reception, attended by Fico. The Russian president said that the forebears of all the world's nations had bequeathed to future generations the duty to preserve and defend peace.
The emerging world order, he said, must "take into account the cultural and civilizational diversity of the peoples of the planet, their right to determine their own destiny and to follow the traditions and precepts of their ancestors".
"And they bequeathed to all of us the duty to preserve and defend peace", Putin concluded.
The Toll of War
The remarks came as Russia’s war against Ukraine entered its fifth year. The United Nations has confirmed more than 15,000 civilian deaths in Ukraine since the invasion began, while warning that the true toll is likely considerably higher because many deaths in occupied or heavily contested areas remain unverified. The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates that Russia suffered nearly 1.2 million battlefield casualties between February 2022 and December 2025, including 275,000 to 325,000 killed. Ukraine suffered an estimated 500,000 to 600,000 battlefield casualties over the same period, including 100,000 to 140,000 killed.
According to the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, March 2026 brought the highest monthly number of civilian casualties since July 2025, with at least 211 civilians killed and 1,206 injured. The International Criminal Court has also issued an arrest warrant for Putin over the alleged unlawful deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children from occupied areas of Ukraine to Russia, allegations the Kremlin rejects.
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