Russian President Vladimir Putin laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier near the Kremlin Walls on Saturday to commemorate the victims of the Great Patriotic War, the name given to the Eastern Front conflict during the Second World War.
After a minute’s silence, Putin also laid flowers at the tombs of the 12 Hero Cities along the Kremlin’s Wall.
Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko and Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu also took part in the ceremony.
Memorials have been organised across Russia on Saturday to mark the 78th anniversary of Nazi Germany’s invasion of the Soviet Union.