Dignitaries gather for VE Day
Dignitaries from around the world are gathering in Moscow today to pay their respects to the 27 million Russians who died in WWII.
Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott and the Duke of York will represent Britain at the ceremony to mark the 60th anniversary of VE Day.
A mass military parade is taking place in Red Square, which is flanked by half a dozen war-era tanks and hundreds of flags, before the laying of wreaths at the tomb of the unknown soldier.
Meanwhile, the Queen is visiting Jersey and Guernsey today to commemorate the liberation of the only British territory that was occupied by the Nazis.
The Channel Islands were believed too difficult to defend and fell to Hitler’s forces in 1940, remaining under Nazi rule until the end of the war.
Scottish First Minister Jack McConnell attended Scotland’s main event in Dundee on Sunday, where he read a lesson at St Andrew’s Cathedral before watching the veterans march.
Mr McConnell said: “Sixty years ago, brave young Scots men and women stood shoulder to shoulder with allies from across the world to free Europe from the evils of facism. They fought with tremendous courage, and their heroism is an inspiration to us all.
“For many Scots, this will be a day of great sadness, but for many others it will also be a day of celebration. The 8th May 1945 marked the end of six years of misery and suffering across Europe. Today, sixty years on, Scotland says thank you.”
And Welsh First Minister Rhodri Morgan attended a parade in Cardiff. Mr Morgan said: “This is Wales’ chance to thank war veterans, home front workers, and war widows for the sacrifices they made during the dark days of World War II, and also celebrate the hard fought freedom they won for future generations.
Speaking to an audience of veterans and officials in Moscow this morning, Russian president Vladimir Putin said: “For us the victory is the victory of all of us.”
But he added that the world was “also aware that the Soviet Union lost dozens of millions of citizens over those years”.
“All the people of the Soviet Union suffered such losses that will never be repaired,” he continued. “Thanks to the valiant elements of our army we repulsed the enemy.”
However, the words issued by US president George Bush, who arrived in Moscow last night for talks with Mr Putin, signalled a different view of the end of the Nazi era.
Although he hailed Russia’s contribution to defeating Hitler, he said the Soviet occupation of eastern Europe that followed was “one of the greatest wrongs of history”.
The two leaders have made efforts to paper over their differences for the television cameras but have recently clashed over President Putin’s heavy-handed rule and Washington’s support for pro-democracy parties in former Soviet republics such as Georgia.
Leaders of Estonia and Lithuania are staying away from today’s celebrations in protest at Russia’s occupation of their countries during the Cold War, while Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili is also not attending.
