“The same” as for the Nazis: the Ukrainian president promised Russia defeat on Monday, the anniversary of the end of World War II, and celebrated with great pomp and high security in Moscow the night before.
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Western countries commemorate the anniversary of the German surrender on May 8, but Moscow has always kept the date of May 9 due to time zone differences.
President Vladimir Putin has made defeating the Nazis an integral part of Russian identity and nationalism, downplaying the role of other allies. And he has consistently placed his invasion of Ukraine in that legacy, saying that his neighbor must be “denazified.”
But on Monday it was Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy who promised the Putin regime the same fate as Adolf Hitler.
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“All the old evils that modern Russia is bringing back will be defeated just as Nazism was defeated,” Zelensky insisted in a speech delivered shortly after another Russian night raid that shot down more than 30 explosive drones published on social media, Kiev and two civilians were killed in the regions of Odessa and Zaporijia (south).
He then announced that henceforth Ukraine will mark the end of World War II in a Western way on May 8 and celebrate Europe Day on May 9, like the EU countries, which Kiev wants to join faster.
The day after this announcement, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel to Kiev to reiterate “the EU’s tireless support for Ukraine,” her spokeswoman announced.
For its part, Russia is preparing for its commemorations with Tuesday’s traditional military parade in the shadow of the Kremlin and a speech by Mr Putin to thousands of soldiers standing at attention in Red Square.
But after 15 months of battlefield setbacks, celebrations in Russia will lack the luster of years past.
Parades and demonstrations were canceled across the country, and the authorities exaggerated the “terrorist” risk.
Especially as attacks on Russian territory, attributed by Moscow to Kiev, have multiplied in recent weeks and a massive Ukrainian counter-offensive appears to be drawing closer or may already be underway.
Most spectacular, although still the subject of many questions, was a drone attack on the Kremlin last week.
There have also been strikes against Russian power plants, railroad sabotage and several assassinations or assassination attempts on figures, such as the one in which nationalist writer Zakhar Prilepin was wounded on Saturday.
The spokesman for the Russian Council Presidency, Dmitry Peskov, therefore justified the cancellation of part of the celebrations on May 9: “When you are dealing with a state sponsor of terrorism, it is actually better to take preventive measures”.
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Russia also shot down dozens of explosive drones against its neighbor overnight from Sunday to Monday. Overall, the damage was limited, around 35 planes targeting Kiev were shot down, according to the city’s military administration.
However, five people were injured and buildings damaged by debris.
One apartment in particular was vandalized, AFP journalists noted.
“We were very scared because we heard the drones for the first time. They flew very low. It was really, really scary,” commented local resident Vladyslav.
The Odessa region was also attacked, with local authorities reporting the destruction of a food warehouse by a missile and the death of its caretaker.
On the Russian side, the administration of the annexed Crimean Peninsula claimed to have repelled a night attack by Ukrainian drones on Sevastopol, the home port of the Russian Black Sea fleet.
Overall, the Russian campaign has been deadlocked for months as the army failed to make any territorial gains in its winter offensive.
Bakhmout, a “fortress town” in the east that has been beset by fighting for almost a year, is the latest symbol of Ukrainians’ bitter resistance.
That fight has also exposed the conflicts within the Russian camp, with the head of the Wagner paramilitary group, Yevgeny Prigojine, in a recent video insulting the high military hierarchy and even threatening to throw in the towel before withdrawing after delivering the promise for more ammo.
The Ukrainian counter-offensive, however, promises to be long and bloody, even if reinforced by Western supplies of arms, as the Russians have spent the winter consolidating their positions and digging trenches to the south and east.