Russia’s Neighbors Celebrate Victory Day over Nazism 9/5

In Central Asia, this year Kazakhstan has decided not to hold the Victory Day parade to save money, but there will still be 50 commemorative activities, including the “immortal army” parade. although in online form.

During the war years, Kazakhstan sent to the front about 1.2 million people (one in every 4 people participated) and lost about 600,000 people. In Uzbekistan, nearly 2 million people participated in the war (about a third of the population), and 538,000 did not return home. About 290,000 people were mobilized in Tajikistan, a third of whom died. In Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, May 9 is known as Victory Day, and in Uzbekistan it is a Day of Remembrance and Honor.

In Kyrgyzstan, which sent 363,000 people to the front (about 23% of the population) and lost 100,000, Victory Day has always been one of the main holidays. Except due to translation Covid-19 in the years 2020-2021, it is regularly celebrated with great festivals and parades of the Immortals.

Since 2020, the government of Turkmenistan has also celebrated Victory Day with a military parade. During the Great Patriotic War, in total, according to various sources, from 180,000 to 700,000 Turkmen soldiers fought on the fronts, at least 90 thousand people died.

In the Caucasus, despite the fact that many conflicts in the South Caucasus regularly turned into armed clashes, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan remained united in their attitude to the Great Patriotic War.

For example, against the opposition’s request, the Georgian government refused to move the Victory Day celebration from May 9 to May 8, even though in light of the events of 2008. Georgia sent some 700,000 people fought in the war (1/5 of the country’s population), more than 300,000 died.

Azerbaijan, like Georgia, sent a fifth of its population to the front – 681,000, of which 300,000 did not return.

For Armenia, for a long time, May 9 was one of the country’s three most important holidays. 320,000 Armenians (1/5 of the population) went to the front, of which 175,000 did not return home. Armenians are proud of the heroes of the Great Patriotic War.

On the Western Front, Belarus lost 2.4 million people, dozens of cities were destroyed, thousands of villages burned. For Belarusians, Victory Day is one of the main holidays of the year. In all areas, flowers are carried to military memorials and memorials, carnival rallies and concerts are held, and fireworks are set off in the evening.

In Moldova, for the vast majority this is still an important family holiday. Nearly 400,000 people of the republic took part in the war, about 84,000 people died. Every year, their memory is honored in a variety of ways – from car races to skydiving. Hundreds of thousands of people across the country laid flowers in memory.

In the Baltics, they believe, the entire Soviet era was an occupation. In all three republics, the celebration was banned.

During the years of the Great Patriotic War, Ukraine lost a fifth of its population: 1.3 million Ukrainians died at the front, another 1.3 million died in Nazi camps. Since 2014, the situation in Ukraine has changed. May 8 is considered a Day of Remembrance and Grief.