Russia's show of strength - including in Crimea

"May 9 was, is and will be our most important holiday," said Russia’s president Vladimir Putin Friday (09.05.2014) in Moscow. Russia celebrated the 69th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany all across the country with military parades and patriotic speeches. The biggest celebrations were held in Moscow. But there were also parades in Crimea.

Parades were held in several cities on the peninsula. In Sebastopol, Russian president Vladimir Putin attended a military parade at the port. "I am sure that 2014 will go into the annals of our whole country as the year when the nations living here firmly decided to be together with Russia, affirming fidelity to the historical truth and the memory of our ancestors," he told a cheering crowd.

"Sebastopol is Russia’s southern shield," reads this poster. Ukraine's head of government, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, had criticized Putin's visit to Crimea as an act of provocation. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she "regrets" the fact that anybody would use the anniversary "in such a tense situation" for a parade in Crimea. NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen called Putin's visit "inappropriate."

There were also celebrations in regions occupied by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, such as here in Slovyansk. Soldiers and veterans also held street celebrations in Donetsk.

Images from Moscow resembled those from past celebrations: intercontinental rockets and tanks, and thousands of soldiers parading across the Red Square in front of the Kremlin. The army presented parts of its weapons arsenal, and President Vladimir Putin held a patriotic speech.

Vladimir Putin appealed to Russians' patriotism. "The iron will of the Soviet people, their fearlessness and stamina saved Europe from slavery," he said at the Red Square. While there, he made no direct reference to the crisis in Ukraine - but he did mention the conflict later in the day, when he was in Crimea.

Military bands played, and the country's most important members of the army - such as Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu - showed off their medals. As in previous years, the army spectacle above all demonstrated the strength of the Russian armed forces.

As part of the parade, military jets flew over the heads of the crowd in Moscow - a mere 200 meters above them. Almost 70 jets, helicopters and transport planes displayed different formations. The victory parade aims at commemorating the victims from the Soviet Union who died in World War II, including an estimated 30 million Russians.

Some 11,000 soldiers marched across the Red Square. May 9 is a national holiday not only in Russia, but also in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Ukraine. The holiday was established during Soviet Union times, in 1965.

Snipers were positioned on roofs surrounding the Red Square. There had been concerns of potential clashes - both in Ukraine and in Russia. The interim government in Kyiv warned of potential provocation by Russian agents.