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Russia was and will remain an insurmountable barrier to Nazism, Russophobia, and antisemitism, he stressed. On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed to continue fighting Nazism, including in Ukraine, during the military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the Red Army’s victory in World War II.

“Russia was and will remain an insurmountable barrier to Nazism, Russophobia, and antisemitism, and will combat the brutality of those promoting such aggressive and destructive ideas,” Putin said during his address from a tribune set up in Red Square in front of Lenin’s Mausoleum.

Putin declared that his country would never forget the lessons of the WW2, in which the USSR— which did not engage in the war until Germany invaded Soviet territory in 1941— lost 26 million people, including eight million soldiers. Although Kyiv did not officially join the three-day unilateral truce declared by Putin, Ukrainian drones did not spoil the Kremlin’s celebration, and none had flown over Russian territory since the day before.

Putin and Xi, Inseparable

A smiling Putin appeared on the tribune between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and the 100-year-old Soviet veteran Ivan Martinushkin, the last living witness who participated in the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland by the Red Army on January 27, 1945.

Putin did not part from Xi for a single moment, constantly making comments to him about the units and military equipment parading over the cobblestones of the square. Not even when they later laid a floral offering at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

In addition to Russian troops, military detachments from thirteen countries marched, including an honor guard from China’s People’s Liberation Army. Not far from Putin sat invited leaders such as Lula da Silva (Brazil), Nicolas Maduro (Venezuela), Miguel Diaz-Canel (Cuba), Teodoro Obiang (Equatorial Guinea), and Alexander Lukashenko (Belarus).

Also invited to the tribune were American and Israeli war veterans, but notably absent were representatives from the Soviet Union’s World War II allies, who did attend the 50th and 60th anniversaries in 1995 and 2005.

Nazism Is Still Alive

Putin, who requested a moment of silence in memory of the fallen, asserted that “truth and justice” are on Russia’s side in fighting the rehabilitation of Nazism, accusing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky—who is of Jewish descent—of doing just that.

He emphasized that the ancestors of the Russian people “entrusted” their descendants to “firmly defend national interests, their millennia-old history, culture, traditional values, and everything that is valuable and sacred to us,” clearly alluding to the Russian language and Orthodox religion in Ukraine.

“The entire country, society, and people support the participants in the special military operation. We are proud of their bravery and determination, that strength of spirit which has always and only brought us victory,” he said and paid tribute to the role played by the Allied countries in defeating Hitler’s forces.

“We will always remember that the opening of a second front in Europe after the decisive battles on Soviet territory brought the victory closer… Russia highly values the contribution to our shared victory made by the soldiers of the Allied armies, resistance fighters, the brave Chinese people, and all those who fought for a peaceful future,” Putin stated.

“The complete defeat of Nazi Germany, militarist Japan, and their satellites in various parts of the world was achieved thanks to joint efforts,” he insisted.

Intercontinental Missiles and Assault Drones

During the parade itself, around 130 war machines rolled through, including the legendary Soviet T-34 tanks and SU-100 self-propelled artillery units, both used during WW2. One of the stars of the parade was the imposing Yars intercontinental ballistic missiles, which have a range of up to 7,500 miles.

Also on display were T-90M Proryv tanks—the first Russian tank with an automatic transmission; the 152mm Malva artillery piece mounted on an eight-wheeled BAZ chassis; Iskander ballistic missiles; and the new Kurganets-25 armored personnel carrier.

But the real novelty was the drones, which have proven highly effective in Ukraine. Specifically, the parade featured Geran-2 drones, widely believed to be copies of Iranian Shahed drones; Orlan reconnaissance drones; and Lancet kamikaze drones, all transported on Kamaz off-road trucks.

"In order to demonstratively pressure and intimidate Ukraine, and also EU and NATO member states, the aggressor state of Russia intends to make a ‘training and combat’ launch of the RS-24 intercontinental ballistic missile from the Yars complex," GUR said in the statement.

There was no immediate comment from Russia on the Ukrainian military intelligence statement.

Russia does not answer questions about its plans to test launch nuclear missiles, the details of which it classifies as a military secret, although it issues statements after such launches.

More than three years into the war against Russia, Ukraine is under enormous pressure as Russia seeks frontline gains in the Ukrainian east, and diplomatic efforts to end the war have so far yielded no results.

The United States launches a financial offensive to block international funding for Chinese projects in Latin America, responding to growing cooperation between countries like Colombia and China under the Belt and Road Initiative.

The U.S. administration, led by Donald Trump, has issued a direct threat to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and other international financial institutions, urging them not to grant subsidies to projects developed by Chinese companies in Latin America. This move comes immediately after Colombia and China signed a strategic plan to strengthen the Belt and Road Initiative, a program aimed at boosting integration and economic development in the region.

Washington’s warning is not limited to Colombia but extends across Latin America and the Caribbean, where the Belt and Road Initiative has projects underway. The U.S. Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs declared that American taxpayers’ funds must not be used to subsidize Chinese companies, arguing that these projects “endanger regional security.”

This stance reflects an attempt to curb China’s growing economic and strategic influence in the hemisphere, at a time when Latin American countries seek to diversify their alliances and sources of investment.

Latin America’s Response and Challenge to U.S. Hegemony

Progressive governments such as Gustavo Petro’s in Colombia and Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s in Brazil have committed to strengthening ties with China, securing multi-billion-dollar agreements for infrastructure and trade that challenge the historic economic and political domination of the United States in the region.

For example, Colombia secured $5.2 billion for its metro system, and Brazil finalized $94 billion in key sector agreements. However, these advances face threats of sanctions, audits, and U.S. commercial pressures aimed at preserving its hegemony and preventing the formation of an autonomous, multipolar Latin American bloc.

The U.S. offensive fits within a containment strategy that revives the Monroe Doctrine in a modern key, using financial and commercial tools to limit the sovereign development of Latin American countries. Latin America’s dependence on U.S. markets and technologies, alongside fears of “debt traps” and covert militarization of Chinese infrastructure, are elements Washington uses to justify its intervention.

However, this policy disregards the legitimate aspirations of Latin American peoples for independent and solidarity-based development rooted in South-South cooperation and regional integration.

This context highlights the geopolitical struggle Latin America faces between maintaining sovereignty and development autonomy in the face of U.S. pressure aimed at blocking strategic Chinese projects that could transform the continent’s economic and political landscape.

Foreign Ministry sources said there was no reference to trade in talks between U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 9.

They said there was also no reference to trade in talks after the launch of Operation Sindoor between U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Foreign Minister Subrahmanyan Jaishankar on May 8 and 10 and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval on May 10.

On Saturday, India and Pakistan agreed to halt all firing and military actions on land, air and sea in talks between the director generals of military operations.

A statement from the Indian foreign secretary confirmed that the decision was taken after a phone call from the Pakistani side and instructions were given to give effect to the agreement.

In talks the previous day, in a second discussion between the military chiefs, issues related to the continuity of the commitment of both sides not to fire or initiate any aggressive or hostile action against each other were discussed.

According to diplomatic sources in New Delhi, it was also agreed that both sides would consider immediate measures to ensure troop reductions at borders and forward areas.