Russia’s Victory Day

In news–Every year, on May 9th Russia celebrates “Victory Day”, a commemoration of the USSR’s defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II in 1945.

History of the day-

The erstwhile Soviet Union first celebrated Victory Day on May 9, 1945, after Germany signed the Instrument of Surrender.
At the end of World War II in 1945, the Allied Powers declared May 8 as Victory in Europe Day but by the time the document was signed, it was already past midnight in Moscow. Russia, therefore, celebrates Victory Day on May 9.
During this event the Russian military holds a parade at Moscow’s Red Square and in other cities to mark the event.
An elaborate ceremony also takes place at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a memorial in Moscow dedicated to Soviet soldiers who died during the war.
The first one was in 1945 and, until the 1990s, it was only held on special anniversaries of WW2, 1965 and 1985.
In 1995, under former Russian President Boris Yeltsin, the parade became yearly.
In the 1990s, it featured workers and civilians, but following NATO’s expansion into former Soviet states on Russia’s fringes throughout the 2000s, the parade’s military element increasingly took centre stage, with rockets and missiles becoming a major focus.

World War I-

World War I, also called First World War or Great War, an international conflict that in 1914–18 embroiled most of the nations of Europe along with Russia, the United States, the Middle East, and other regions.
The war pitted the Central Powers—mainly Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Turkey—against the Allies—mainly France, Great Britain, Russia, Italy, Japan, and, from 1917, the United States.
It ended with the defeat of the Central Powers. The war was virtually unprecedented in the slaughter, carnage, and destruction it caused.

World War II-

World War II, also called Second World War, conflict that involved virtually every part of the world during the years 1939–45.
The principal belligerents were the Axis powers—Germany, Italy, and Japan—and the Allies—France, Great Britain, the United States, the Soviet Union, and, to a lesser extent, China.
The war was in many respects a continuation, after an uneasy 20-year hiatus, of the disputes left unsettled by World War I.
The 40,000,000–50,000,000 deaths incurred in World War II make it the bloodiest conflict, as well as the largest war, in history.