🎙 Address by President of Russia and Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin at the military parade marking the 81st anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945

📍 Moscow, May 9, 2026

💬 Vladimir Putin:

Congratulations on Victory Day — our sacred, radiant, and most important holiday!

🥇 We hold sacred the legacy and testament of the soldiers of Victory. Devotion to the Motherland unites our entire country and all the people of Russia, while preserving the memory of the events of the Great Patriotic War, its true history, and its genuine heroes is a matter of honour for us.

We will always remember the feat of the Soviet people — it was they who made the decisive contribution to the defeat of Nazism, saved their country and the world, put an end to total and merciless evil, and restored sovereignty to those states that had capitulated to Hitler’s Germany and become obedient accomplices to its crimes. <…>

❗️June 22, 1941, remains one of the most tragic and sorrowful dates in our history. This year marks 85 years since the beginning of the Great Patriotic War.

The Nazis treacherously attacked the Soviet Union, planning to seize the country and its vast resources, destroy its culture and historical heritage, and ultimately exterminate, enslave, and commit genocide against the entire multinational Soviet people — against all the peoples, nations, and ethnic groups of the Soviet Union.

To carry out these criminal plans, forces from across Europe were assembled. It seemed that Nazi strategists had calculated everything with meticulous precision — except for one thing: what is known as the Russian character and the strength of spirit of the Soviet people. <…>

🕯 We bow our heads before those who fell in battle. Before those who were tortured in occupation and captivity, who died of hunger in besieged Leningrad and in other surrounded cities and towns. Before all who gave their lives for the Motherland, for Russia. We honour the memory of sons and daughters, fathers and mothers, grandfathers and great-grandfathers, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends.

⸻

The great feat of the generation of victors inspires the soldiers who are today carrying out the tasks of the special military operation. They stand against an aggressive force armed and supported by the entire NATO bloc.

☝️ Despite this, our heroes continue to advance.

Alongside Russian servicemen stand workers and designers, engineers, scientists, and inventors. Continuing the traditions of their predecessors and drawing on modern combat experience, they are creating advanced and unique weapons systems and expanding their mass production. <…>

I firmly believe that our cause is just! We are united! Victory has always been — and will always be — ours!

Glory to the victorious people! Glory to the veterans! Glory to the Armed Forces of Russia!

Happy Victory Day!

🥇 #Victory81

🎗В центре Кейптауна состоялось шествие «Бессмертного полка», объединившее более 150 участников — соотечественников и южноафриканцев, для которых важна память о тех, кто сражался за мир и свободу.

По случаю 81-й годовщины Великой Победы участники прошли с портретами своих родных — ветеранов, фронтовиков, тружеников тыла и всех, чьи судьбы были связаны с Великой Отечественной войной. Для многих это стало личным и трогательным моментом памяти, благодарности и уважения к поколению победителей.

В завершение мероприятия была организована «Стена Памяти» — памятная экспозиция с фотографиями участников Великой Отечественной войны.

«Бессмертный полк» напоминает: пока мы помним имена героев, рассказываем их истории и передаём эту память дальше, их подвиг остаётся живым.

#Победа81 #ДеньПобеды
#МирСпасСоветскийСолдат
#МыПомним