Zürcher Nachrichten - Germany slams Russian 'lies', France warns of war 'spectre' in WWII commemorations

Veterans of the 1939-45 war walked or were pushed in wheelchairs to events across Europe for one of the last major commemorations of the end of the devastating conflict. Even US President Donald Trump declared that May 8 would now be known as "Victory Day for World War II".

But the shadow of more than three years of conflict in Ukraine, which has seen many European countries race to rearm, darkened many of the ceremonies. President Vladimir Putin will on Friday watch over a large Victory Day parade in Moscow to mark the anniversary.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier criticised Russia's "historical lies" over the Ukraine war, as he paid tribute to the Allied soldiers and resistance fighters who, "with all their strength and at great sacrifice", defeated Nazi Germany.

He also praised the Soviet Red Army -- in which Russian and Ukrainian troops fought side-by-side -- for their role. But he added: "We firmly oppose the Kremlin's historical lies today."

Russia has cast its three-year offensive against Ukraine as a fight against "neo-Nazis" and has channelled its own wartime legacy to try to justify the war.

But Steinmeier said "The war against Ukraine is not a continuation of the fight against fascism.

"Putin's war of aggression, his campaign against a free, democratic country, has nothing in common with the fight against Nazi tyranny in World War II," he said.

"Today we no longer need to ask -- did May 8 liberate us?" he said. "But we must ask -- how can we remain free?" he declared to applause from German MPs, although many from the far-right AfD -- now the biggest opposition party -- did not join in.

In Paris, Macron also said that the idea of "perpetual peace" in Europe had been illusory.

Europeans have seen "the spectre of war return, a resurgence of imperialism and totalitarian behaviour that have trampled on the rights of nations once again," Macron said in a ceremony at the Arc de Triomphe war memorial.

"We will never be done with fighting for victory," he added.

King Charles III led Britain's commemorations at a service where veterans, including centenarians, were present.

War-time prime minister Winston Churchill's 10-year-old great-great-grandson Alexander lit a candle of peace during the service, which was preceded by a nationwide two-minute silence.

Huge crowds thronged central London for the last of four days of events for the commemoration.

In Washington, Trump said that "without America the liberation would never have happened" as declared that May 8 would be known as Victory Day for World War II.

"We celebrate the unmatched might, strength, and power of the American Armed Forces, and we commit to protecting our sacred birthright of liberty against all threats, foreign and domestic," he added in a separate White House pronouncement.

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B.Brunner--NZN