Putin says Russia fighting NATO-backed force in Ukraine, calls invasion ‘just’ at WWII Victory Day parade

By AFP 9 May 2026, 11:17 am

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Russian servicemen stand in a formation before the World War II Victory Day military parade in Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Pavel Bednyakov, Pool)

MOSCOW, Russia — Russian President Vladimir Putin says that his soldiers in Ukraine were fighting an “aggressive force” backed by all of NATO, and that the Russian army’s cause was “just,” as he addressed an annual Victory Day parade on Red Square.

“The great feat of the generation of victors inspires the soldiers carrying out the goals of the special military operation today,” Putin says in his address, referring to the Ukraine war.

“They are confronting an aggressive force armed and supported by the entire NATO bloc. And despite this, our heroes move forward,” he says, adding later: “I firmly believe that our cause is just.”