Internewscast Journal
  • Home
  • US News
  • Local News
  • Health
  • People
  • Guest Post
  • Support Our Cause
Internewscast Journal
  • Home
  • US News
  • Local News
  • Health
  • People
  • Guest Post
  • Support Our Cause
Home Local news How Putin Leverages the USSR’s WWII Victory to Gain Support for His Leadership and the Ukraine Conflict
  • Local news

How Putin Leverages the USSR’s WWII Victory to Gain Support for His Leadership and the Ukraine Conflict

    How Putin uses the USSR's victory in World War II to rally support for him and the war in Ukraine
    Up next
    Woman allegedly pours 'hot chicken grease' on boyfriend
    Woman Accused of Pouring Hot Chicken Grease on Boyfriend
    Published on 08 May 2025
    Author
    Internewscast
    Tags
    • and,
    • for,
    • him,
    • how,
    • Nikolai Petrov,
    • putin,
    • rally,
    • Stepan Bandera,
    • support,
    • The,
    • Ukraine,
    • uses,
    • USSR039s,
    • Victory,
    • Vladimir Putin,
    • Volodymyr Zelenskyy,
    • war,
    • World,
    • world news,
    • Xi Jinping
    Share this @internewscast.com
    FacebookXRedditPinterest

    Few countries commemorate the end of World War II with as much enthusiasm and grandeur as Russia, where the triumph over Nazi Germany 80 years ago is still celebrated with immense pride and considered a significant historical event.

    Victory Day, observed on May 9, is Russia’s most significant secular celebration, underscoring the nation’s wartime sacrifices. However, the Kremlin also leverages this day to strengthen national pride and attempt to restore the global influence it lost with the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1991.

    President Vladimir Putin, who has led Russia for 25 of those 80 years, has made Victory Day a central aspect of his administration, using it to support his ongoing 3-year-old invasion of Ukraine.

    He has also sought to underline the failure of Western efforts to isolate Moscow by inviting Chinese President Xi Jinping and other leaders to the festivities, which this year have been overshadowed by reports of Ukrainian drone attacks targeting Moscow and severe disruptions at the capital’s airports, as well as cellphone internet outages.

    A look at why Victory Day is so important for Russia and Putin:

    The Soviet sacrifice of World War II

    The Soviet Union lost a staggering 27 million people in what it calls the Great Patriotic War from 1941-45. That sacrifice left a deep scar in the national psyche.

    Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union on June 22, 1941, and quickly overran the western part of the country. They got as close as 30 kilometers (under 19 miles) from Moscow by October of that year, but the Red Army rebounded and routed the invaders.

    Soviet troops dealt crushing defeats to Germany in 1943 in Stalingrad and Kursk. and then drove the Nazi forces back across the western Soviet Union all the way to Berlin.

    Putin has noted that every seventh Soviet citizen was killed, while the United Kingdom lost one out of every 127 and the United States one out of 320.

    “The Soviet Union and the Red Army, no matter what anyone is trying to prove today, made the main and crucial contribution to the defeat of Nazism,” Putin wrote in 2020.

    A Putin family story from World War II

    Putin is deeply emotional to the history of World War II, saying “we will always remember the high price the Soviet people paid for the victory.”

    He often invokes stories from his parents, Vladimir and Maria, in the war, and the death of his 2-year-old brother, Viktor, known as “Vitya,” during the 2 1/2-year Nazi siege of his home of Leningrad, now called St. Petersburg.

    ”It was the place where my mother miraculously managed to survive,” Putin wrote. “My father, despite being exempt from active duty, volunteered to defend his hometown.”

    He also recalled in a magazine article how his father talked about a scouting mission behind Nazi lines when his comrades were killed and he survived by hiding in a swamp and breathing through a reed while German soldiers walked a few steps away.

    Putin’s father was badly wounded. After leaving the hospital, he walked home on crutches to see morgue workers taking his wife’s body away for burial.

    “He came up to her and it seemed to him that she was breathing, and he said to the orderlies, ‘She’s still alive!’” Putin’s father recounted to his son.

    The morgue workers replied, “She’ll die on the way, she won’t survive.” But Putin said his father pushed them away with crutches and forced them to carry her back to their apartment.

    World War II’s role in Kremlin policies

    Putin’s emphasis on World War II history reflects not only his desire to showcase Russia’s military might but also his effort to rally the country behind his agenda.

    World War II is a rare event in the nation’s divisive history under Communist rule that is revered by all political groups, and the Kremlin has used that sentiment to encourage national pride and underline Russia’s position as a global power.

    Victory Day parades are a massive show of its armed forces, with thousands of troops and scores of heavy equipment, including mobile launchers carrying nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles, rolling across Red Square, and flyovers of dozens of warplanes. Military parades, fireworks and other festivities are held in cities across the country.

    Authorities also encourage May 9 demonstrations featuring what is known as the “Immortal Regiment,” in which people carry photos of relatives who fought in World War II. Putin joined those rallies for several years, carrying a picture of his father.

    Using World War II to justify the invasion of Ukraine

    When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, Putin declared it was aimed at the “demilitarization” and “denazification” of its neighbor, falsely alleging that neo-Nazi groups were shaping Ukraine’s politics under President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is Jewish. The claims were vehemently dismissed by Kyiv and its Western allies.

    Putin tried to cast Ukraine’s veneration of some of its nationalist leaders who cooperated with the Nazis in World War II as a sign of Kyiv’s purported Nazi sympathies. He regularly made references to Ukrainian nationalist figures such as Stepan Bandera, who was killed by a Soviet spy in Munich in 1959, as an underlying justification for the Russian military action in Ukraine.

    “The Kremlin has mixed those issues and used the victory over Nazi Germany as a foundation for building anti-Ukrainian narratives,” said political analyst Nikolai Petrov. “In Putin’s mind and in the Kremlin’s plans, the victory over Nazis rhymes with the victory over the Ukrainian neo-Nazism as they put it.”

    Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

    Share this @internewscast.com
    FacebookXRedditPinterest
    You May Also Like
    ICE agents detain mother in Pasadena in front of children without showing a warrant
    • Local news

    Mayor Criticizes Recent ICE Raids as ‘Utterly Disgraceful and Unpatriotic’

    () Bell Gardens Mayor Jorgel Chavez has called recent ICE raids happening…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Trump megabill faces GOP holdouts amid marathon vote-a-rama
    • Local news

    GOP Resistance Challenges Trump’s Massive Bill During Intense Voting Session

    Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is tasked with securing the backing…
    • Internewscast
    • June 30, 2025
    Bryan Kohberger appears set to plead guilty in 4 Idaho college students' deaths
    • Local news

    Bryan Kohberger Poised to Admit Guilt in the Deaths of 4 Idaho College Students

    Bryan Kohberger, the individual accused of the fatal stabbing of four college…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    LIST: Fourth of July fireworks displays, celebrations and more in the Tri-Cities
    • Local news

    Guide to Fourth of July Fireworks Displays and Celebrations in the Tri-Cities

    TRI-CITIES, Tenn./Va. (WJHL) — The Fourth of July is right around the…
    • Internewscast
    • June 30, 2025
    The suspension of Thailand's prime minister over a leaked phone call stirs familiar turmoil
    • Local news

    Thai Prime Minister Suspended Amidst Controversy Over Leaked Phone Call, Sparking Political Turmoil

    BANGKOK – The suspension of Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra by the…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Solar minigrid brings light and hope to a Goma neighborhood, offering blueprint for rest of Congo
    • Local news

    Solar Minigrid Illuminates Goma Neighborhood, Provides Model for Congo

    GOMA – Street lights erase the shadows where attackers once hid. Noisy,…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Texas man admits to killing missing American Airlines flight attendant: Docs
    • Local news

    Texas Resident Confesses to Murder of Missing American Airlines Flight Attendant: Court Documents Reveal

    TARRANT COUNTY, Texas (KFDX/KJTL) A Fort Worth man has confessed to killing…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    EPA says it will delay pollution rules for coal plants
    • Local news

    EPA to Postpone Enforcement of Pollution Regulations for Coal Plants

    The Trump administration says that it plans to delay and potentially loosen…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Austin House closes, several families displaced
    • Local news

    Austin House Shutters, Displacing Several Families

    SAVANNAH, Ga. () – The Tom D. Austin house is closing permanently,…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Lady Lake seeks help to solve 2023 death, the town’s only unsolved homicide
    • Local news

    Lady Lake Requests Assistance in Solving 2023’s Sole Unsolved Homicide Case

    LADY LAKE, Fla. – Monday marks two years since a 20-year-old was…
    • Internewscast
    • June 30, 2025
    What we know about suspected sniper in Idaho firefighter ambush
    • Local news

    Details Uncovered About the Suspected Sniper Involved in Idaho’s Firefighter Ambush

    () The gunman accused of fatally shooting two firefighters and wounding a…
    • Internewscast
    • June 30, 2025
    IAFF president: Death of Idaho firefighters 'beyond awful'
    • Local news

    IAFF President Describes Idaho Firefighters’ Deaths as ‘Truly Devastating’

    () The president of the International Association of Fire Fighters has called the…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Trump's foreign aid cuts could lead to 14 million deaths
    • Celeb News

    Trump’s Foreign Aid Reductions Could Result in 14 Million Deaths

    More than 14 million people could die as a result of Donald…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Nick Kyrgios mischievously suggests Emma Raducanu is in a Wimbledon LOVE TRIANGLE with Carlos Alcaraz AND Jack Draper after she spoke out on romance rumours
    • Sport

    Nick Kyrgios playfully hints at a Wimbledon love triangle involving Emma Raducanu with Carlos Alcaraz and Jack Draper following her comments on dating rumors.

    Nick Kyrgios has humorously suggested that Carlos Alcaraz and Jack Draper are…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Cattle serve as the backdrop for a roundtable discussion on the New World Screwworm at the Texas A&M Beef Center in College Station, Texas on, April 29, 2025. (Meredith Seaver/College Station Eagle via AP, File)
    • Local news

    US-Mexico Border Reopening for Cattle Imports Following Screwworm Concerns

    MEXICO CITY (AP) — Both Mexico and the United States announced plans…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Second person dies after shooting at Atlanta fraternity picnic
    • Local news

    Two Lives Lost Following Shooting at Atlanta Fraternity Picnic

    ATLANTA (AP) — A second person has died after a fraternity picnic…
    • Internewscast
    • July 1, 2025
    Internewscast Journal
    • Home
    • Privacy Policy
    • DMCA Notice
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Guest Post
    • Support Our Cause
    Copyright 2023. All Right Reserverd.