Russian President Vladimir Putin has addressed a sea of troops at Moscow’s Red Square on Victory Day, praising soldiers fighting against Ukraine and reinforcing his narrative of denazification.
"You are fighting for the motherland, for its future, so that no one forgets the lessons of the Second World War," he said on the date when the country remembers their defeat of the Nazis in World War Two.
Mr Putin's comments came as Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a video message he would not allow Russia to appropriate victory against the Nazis in 1945 to the country's recent invasion of Ukraine.
Analysts had warned Mr Putin might declare war against Ukraine during the speech, tying the context of Victory Day to his narrative of Russia’s "denazification" of Ukraine, which he has used to justify Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
But the Russian president didn’t declare war or claim a final victory as some predicted.
Instead, he reinforced the narrative that Russia was under direct threat by the West and NATO expansion.
Russian servicemen take part in the Victory Day military parade in the Red Square in Moscow on Monday. Source: EPA / MAXIM SHIPENKOV/EPA
"In Kyiv, they were saying they might get nuclear weapons and NATO started exploring the lands close to us and that became an obvious threat to our country and to our borders.
"Everything was telling us that there is a need to fight."
Mr Putin called Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “just” and said Russian soldiers were fighting for their motherland.
"You are fighting for your motherland, its future.
"For Russia, for victory, hurrah!" Mr Putin said, to which hundreds of onlooking soldiers chanted “hurrah” in response.
'We won then. We will win now.'
Mr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, released a video statement saying he would not allow Mr Putin to appropriate victory against the Nazis in 1945 to Russia’s current invasion of Ukraine.
"Today we celebrate Victory Day over Nazism,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
“We are proud of our ancestors who together with other nations in the anti-Hitler coalition defeated Nazism. And we will not allow anyone to annex this victory.
"We will not allow it to be appropriated."
Mr Zelenskyy said in the video that “the enemy", referring to Russia, dreamed of Ukraine not celebrating Victory Day so their narrative of denazification could be further propagated.
“Millions of Ukrainians fought Nazism,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
“The Nazis were expelled from Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, Melitopol, Crimea."
All of the towns Mr Zelenskyy mentioned are now occupied by Russian forces.
"The names of these cities inspire us today. They give us faith that we will drive the occupiers from our land.
"We won then. We will win now."
Why Putin didn't declare victory
Professor in International Security at the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University (ANU) John Blaxland told SBS News that Mr Putin could not declare victory even though he would have liked to.
“He would have liked to have had a victory moment to match the significance of the 9th of May, but that hasn’t materialised.”
Mr Blaxland said that while Mr Putin did control the media and much of the information about the war, the sheer amount of Russian troops who weren’t coming home and the effects of economic sanctions were “impossible to hide", hence why he didn’t declare victory in his speech.
“Were he to pretend it was a victory and everything was fine, it may have undermined his credibility further. So owning the fact that there is a battle underway and seeking to rally the troops to the cause is a more effective way, in regards to the Russian mindset.
“Thankfully he hasn’t escalated and declared war, but he is doubling down on the rationale which suggests the war will go on for a long time.”
Mr Blaxland said Russia’s claim that there is a prevalence of neo-Nazis in Ukraine has been “blown out of all proportion for rhetorical, political and strategic reasons”.
As part of the tradition in Russia on Victory Day, civilians walked the streets with portraits of their ancestors who died during World War II.
People carry a portrait of former Soviet leader Josef Stalin and portraits of Soviet leaders and relatives who fought in World War II, Russian and Soviet flags, during the Immortal Regiment march in Ulan-Ude, the regional capital of Buryatia, a region near the Russia-Mongolia border, Russia, on Monday. Source: AP / AP
Victory Day is not only celebrated by former Soviet states like Russia and Ukraine, but also by the former Allies in World War II like France and the UK.
The day is also celebrated by countries that formed Hitler's Third Reich like Germany and Austria.
