Russia, marching on Red Square on 9 May, will try to whitewash its mass shootings of civilians, execution of prisoners of war, and rape, committed in Ukraine. The Russian army has committed and continues to commit atrocities in Ukraine on a scale not seen in Europe since World War II, says the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Ukrainian authorities say that the foreign military participation in a Moscow parade is unacceptable and will be seen by Kyiv as an affront to the memory of the victory over Nazism, of the millions of Ukrainian front-line soldiers who liberated its country and Europe eight decades ago.
The ministry has reminded that the army, which will take part in the event, is not the liberators of Europe but the occupiers and war criminals.
“Marching alongside them is to share responsibility for the blood of murdered Ukrainian children, civilians, and soldiers, not to honor the victory over Nazism,” its statement says.
The ministry reminds that its the Ukrainian people, one of the nations that defeated Nazism, are facing a brutal war. During the aggression, Russian soldiers have committed hundreds of thousands of war crimes, killing 620 and wounding nearly 2,000, and deporting at least 20,000 Ukrainian children.
Since the Soviet era, and especially under Vladimir Putin, the 9 May WWII Victory Day has evolved from a remembrance of peace and sacrifice into a display of military power. In recent years, Russian authorities have drawn direct parallels between the WWII struggle and the current war, using the occasion to reinforce patriotic narratives and legitimize state policies, including the aggression against Ukraine.
“We call on all foreign states to refrain from having their military personnel participate in the parade in Moscow on 9 May,” it stresses.
This is especially relevant for countries that declare neutrality regarding Russia’s war or consistently maintain a neutral position on the war.
“Participation of military personnel from such countries in a joint parade will directly violate the declared neutrality and will appear as support for the aggressor state,” say Ukrainian authorities.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has called on all foreign states and international organizations to properly honor the victims of World War II, without justifying atrocities against Ukrainians.
On 8 May, Ukraine, together with the rest of Europe and the world, will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the victory over Nazism, not the day after as Russia does.
The World War II front passed through Ukrainian territory twice, and the total human losses of the Ukrainian people amounted to eight million dead: 5 million civilians and 3 million soldiers.
More than 6 million Ukrainians fought in the ranks of the Red Army, and hundreds of thousands were part of resistance movements and the armies of the Allied Anti-Hitler Coalition.
