Every year, Russia celebrates Victory Day on May 9. At 12:33 on May 9, 1945, the Unconditional Surrender Document of the German National Party Committee was signed, ending the great Patriotic War of the Soviet Union.
Russia celebrates Victory Day under the Federal Law "Russian Military Glory Days and Memorable Days" signed by Russian President Boris Yeltsin on March 13, 1995.
Activities to celebrate Victory Day are stipulated in the Federal Law dated May 19, 1995 "On the immortalization of the Victory of the Soviet People in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945".
According to this law, parades with the participation of military weapons and equipment and fireworks will be held on May 9 in Moscow, heroic cities and cities that are the headquarters of military regions, fleets, combined armies and Caspie fleets.
Parades, gatherings, conferences and welcoming ceremonies were held across Russia on May 9 to honor veterans of the Great Patriotic War of 1941 1945.
In modern Russia, parades have been held in Moscow's Red Square since 1995, accompanied by the arrival of heavy military equipment since 2008.
In 2020, all ceremonial events in Moscow were postponed or switched to online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, except for air shows and fireworks. The parade on Moscow's Red Square took place on June 24 that year.
In 2023-24, Victory Day parades on May 9 have been canceled in parts of Russia for security reasons. The parade in Red Square on May 9, 2024 had the participation of more than 9,000 soldiers, 75 weapons systems and fighter jets.
The Soviet Union lost about 27 million people in the Great Patriotic War (accounting for 40% of the total number of casualties in World War 2), of which the majority were civilian casualties.
According to data from the State Committee, especially on the establishment and investigation of the brutal actions of the German invaders, the Germans destroyed all or part of more than 1,700 cities and towns, more than 70,000 villages and settlements in the Soviet Union. Direct damage to the State and people up to 679 billion rubles at the exchange rate in 1941.
A total of 11,657 people were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union to honor their heroic actions during the Great Patriotic War (3,051 were posthumously awarded), including 95 women and 44 foreigners.
As of May 8, 2025, Soviet lawyer and statesman Boris Kravtsov (Moscow) is the last living Soviet Hero to be awarded this title in the Great Patriotic War.
According to Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, as of early 2025, there are about 7,000 veterans of the Great Patrol War living in Russia.
According to current law, the Veterans' Regulations also extend to those working behind the scenes, widows of war participants, former concentration camp prisoners, and residents of Leningrad (now St. Petersburg). Petersburg) and Sevastopol, as well as residents of the besieged Stalingrad (now Volgograd) received the regime in April 2023.
