President Putin's Congratulation to Participants in Red Square Military Parade

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated on the Victory Day the participants in the military parade in Red Square, a RIA Novosti correspondent reports.

In his address, the president said:

"Soldiers and seamen, sergeants and petty officers!

Ensigns and warrant officers!

Officers, generals and admirals!"

Dear veterans!

Citizens of Russia!

Let me congratulate you on the Victory Day, the great and sacred holiday, a day of national pride and glory.

Today we honour and recall those who won the war, who have gone through the hard and horrible path of war, but survived; repelled the enemy from the borders of the Fatherland, liberated other countries and did not disgrace their homeland and their people.

This heroic victory was won 58 years ago. The powerful machine of Wehrmacht was stopped, the mighty, arrogant and ruthless enemy was destroyed. This enemy was sure of success, it had conquered almost the whole Europe, but was smashed here, on our land.

We bow our heads before commanders and privates, the dead and the alive, those who were on the frontline and helped win the victory by their toil in the rear.

The Great Patriotic War is an epoch of intrepidity, a time of feats, a time of strengthening the spirit and triumph of honour. Up to now, we've drawn strength from the sources of this Victory, we find spiritual support there and try to live and work for such a horrible war never to repeat.

All peoples of the multinational Soviet Union contributed to the common victory. Therefore, the veterans are congratulated today in all fraternal countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

This is our common holiday and the day of our shared memory of how we advanced together toward the victory, fought together, worked together, not thinking about awards, ranks and glory.

At that time, we had only one objective - to destroy the enemy, to come back home and to raise the country from ruins and ashes.

The victory cost us a tremendous price. It was obtained with blood, courage, sweat and pain.

The love for homeland was the main victory force of the war, it was stronger than Hitler's hordes and cannons, stronger than agony and privations which were the lot of those who experienced the war.

These days we turn again to the lessons of the war.

We ought to remember how that war began and cannot forget why the Nazis appropriated the right to decide the world's destinies, the destinies of other countries and nations, why they thought themselves the creators of history and hoped to go unpunished.

The total threat of Nazism was not fully realised at the outset of WWII.

Due to the quiescence of the international community, Nazis could behave aggressively and impudently. It took the humanity years and millions of victims to join hands. It was the unity that helped defeat Nazism.

Today, we also need this priceless experience.

International terrorism - a new and very serious threat has appeared in the world. All civilised countries stand up together against this threat.

In order to counter it, we must strengthen our Armed Forces and learn endurance from our fathers and grandfathers who squared up to a cruel and strong enemy.

Their experience, their victory is our wealth and our spiritual beacon.

Happy Victory Day, comrades!

Glory to the soldiers of the Great Patriotic War!

Glory to the winner people!

Glory to Russia! Hurrah!"

The troops replied to the president's address with a triple hurrah. After that, the national anthem of the Russian Federation was performed.