At 9 a.m. local time in Sweden, Russia began its traditional parade on Red Square in Moscow to celebrate victory in World War II. Less than an hour later, this year's toned-down version was over.
While President Vladimir Putin was giving a short speech, mobile networks in the Russian capital were turned off.
Putin's short speech focused on the Soviet Union's efforts in World War II. He also touched on Russia's ongoing offensive war against Ukraine, albeit to a lesser extent.
North Koreans participated
Next to Putin in the stands were Russian soldiers who participated in the war in Ukraine, according to state-run Tass.
They are defending themselves against an aggressive force supported by the entire NATO bloc, Putin claimed, referring to Ukraine.
Soldiers from Russia's ally North Korea also participated in the celebration, according to television images.
According to Tass, more than 1,000 Russian soldiers took part in the parade. But this year's parade, as expected, is significantly smaller than usual. For the first time in many years, it was held without tanks, missiles or other heavy weapons systems. The Russian Defense Ministry has explained this by "the current operational situation."
On Friday, US President Donald Trump announced that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to a three-day ceasefire, May 9-11, over the commemoration of the end of World War II.
Accusing each other
But on Saturday morning, the first day of the promised ceasefire, Ukraine's air defenses reported new Russian attacks overnight. 34 of 43 drones that Russia sent toward Ukraine since 6 p.m. on Friday have reportedly been destroyed.
On Saturday evening, both Russia and Ukraine accused each other of violating the ceasefire, AFP reported.
"The number of attacks by the attacker amounts to 51 since the beginning of the day," the Ukrainian General Staff stated.
The Russian Defense Ministry, in turn, wrote that "Ukrainian armed groups have carried out attacks with drones and artillery."
