This tweet purports to show a BUK antiaircraft system bursting into flames during the Victory Day parade in the Siberian city of Chita:
In case you missed it, here is what German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier had to say during a visit to the southern Russian city of Volgograd, which was called Stalingrad during World War II:
"The people here in Stalingrad began the liberation of Europe from the Nazi regime and they've paid an enormous price for it. As a German, I bow to their sacrifice and on behalf of Germany I ask for forgiveness for the enormous suffering which Germans brought here."
Victory Day events in the southern Russian city of Novorossiisk:
Nice piece by Telegraph correspondent Tom Parfitt on the "battle for historical truth" that is going on in Russia now regarding the events of 70 years ago. It draws important attention to the Russan Military Historical Society and the role of Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky.
Victory Day photos from the eastern Ukrainian city of Dontesk, which is controlled by Russia-backed separatists:
The Red Army monument in Sofia, Bulgaria, was once again vandalized:
Here is some rare footage of the September 1945 victory parade held jointly by all the Allies in Berlin:
And here is the June 1945 victory parade in Moscow:
And it is worth noting that Victory Day, May 9, was an ordinary working day in the Soviet Union from 1945 until 1965. On the 20th anniversary of the victory, Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev organized the first Red Square Victory Day military parade:
On May 8, the Kremlin website posted an unusual congratulatory message from President Vladimir Putin. Putin congratulated the leadership of several former Soviet countries and of the breakaway Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. He went on to congratulate "the citizens" of Georgia and Ukraine. Here's the translation:
The president of Russia congratulated the leaders of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and also the citizens of Georgia and Ukraine on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of victory in the Great Fatherland War.
Victory Day events in Yerevan, Armenia:
A few more images from the Moscow parade earlier today:
