In welcoming remarks to the heads of state and others at a gala reception in Moscow for the 80th anniversary of Victory Day, Russian President Vladimir Putin called for a new system of security and international relations.
“I consider it important that today we have come together to celebrate the anniversary of the Great Victory and remember those who gave all their strength for the freedom of their native land and the entire world, those who sacrificed themselves in the name of saving humanity.
“This solidarity and fortitude in attaining a common goal is an example of invaluable importance. This example is especially important for us now as we again have to address the issue of sovereign rights of states and peoples to their identity and independence, to the very possibility to live in accordance with the historical, cultural and spiritual traditions of their forefathers, and to create a system of security and international relations based on the principles of real equality and respect for each other’s interests….
“As time takes us further away from the events of World War Two, it becomes all the more important for us to preserve the values that were upheld by the Great Victory and to pass to future generations the truth of how and in the name of what it was won, as well as our conviction that solidarity of the people in their support of the ideals of peace, freedom and justice is of unlimited power.”