Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced the country will now celebrate Europe Day on May 9, coinciding with Russia's annual Victory Day military parade, one of the most important national holidays for Moscow.
From Tuesday, Ukraine will observe Europe Day each year "together with the states of the European Union," Zelensky said in a statement published by the presidential office on Monday. The holiday was previously observed in Ukraine later in May, but the European Union has always celebrated Europe Day on May 9.
The day marks a "new form of political cooperation in Europe, which would make war between Europe's nations unthinkable," the bloc has said. It falls on the same day as Russia's Victory Day, which commemorates the Soviet victory over Nazi forces at the end of World War II.
In reference to nearly a decade of hostilities between Russia and Ukraine, Zelensky said in an address on Monday that "this will be the Day of Europe, which has supported Ukrainians for all nine years of aggression and 439 days of the full-scale invasion."
In 2014, Russia illegally annexed the Crimean peninsula to the south of Ukraine and backed separatists in the eastern Donbas region as they broke away from Kyiv. Ukraine is not a member of the E.U., although it does have candidate status and the bloc has provided support and aid to Kyiv against Russian forces.
Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, will meet with Zelensky in Kyiv on May 9, where she will "reaffirm the E.U.'s unwavering support for Ukraine" on Europe Day, the European Commission tweeted on Monday.
The announcement on Monday coincides with VE Day, also known as Victory in Europe Day, which marked the end of World War II in Europe.
"It is on May 8 that most nations of the world remember the greatness of the victory over the Nazis," Zelensky said in a statement.
Throughout the invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin has attempted to justify its military operations as efforts against neo-Nazism in Ukraine and in Kyiv's government. This narrative has not been accepted by Ukraine or the international community.
A significant national holiday, several Russian regions and Russian-controlled areas have canceled their anticipated May 9 Victory Day celebrations as the war in Ukraine rages on.
The Russian border regions of Belgorod and Kursk, as well as Crimea, cited security concerns for the cancellations.
On Saturday, the British Defense Ministry said in its daily intelligence update that 21 cities had called off their military parades, although Moscow is not among that number.
"Moscow's Victory Day celebration is likely to go ahead but on a smaller scale," the government department said, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not hold a traditional reception following the parade.
"The potential for protests and discontent over the Ukraine war are also likely to have influenced the calculus of the Russian leadership," the ministry said.
The General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said on Monday that Russia had launched a barrage of missile and drone strikes across the country overnight, with damage reported in cities such as Kyiv and several regions of Ukraine, including in the southern Odesa region.
Ukraine's Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said earlier in the day that it was "impossible" to be sure whether Russia will launch renewed attacks on Ukraine on May 9.
"The possibility of escalation will always exist, regardless of the date, as long as the war lasts," Maliar wrote on Telegram. "The fact that Russians like to give historical parallels - yes," she added, saying: "But there were already a lot of historical and festive dates, until which they 'did not escalate.'"
Newsweek reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry via email for comment.
Related Articles
Start your unlimited Newsweek trial