Putin prepares to host dozens of world leaders for Victory Day parade

At the Victory Day parade in Moscow, 28 foreign leaders wil arrive to Moscow. These include the leaders of Armenia, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Palestine, Abkhazia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Venezuela, Vietnam, Guinea-Bissau, Egypt, Zimbabwe, China, the Republic of the Congo, Cuba, Laos, Mongolia, Myanmar, Slovakia, Serbia, Papua New Guinea, Ethiopia, and South Ossetia.

Ukraine has already begun trying to humiliate Vladimir Putin as heads of state arrive in Moscow - but an attack by Kyiv during the celebrations in Russia is highly unlikely.

It's hard not to view the motivating factor behind Vladimir Putin's latest unilateral ceasefire in Ukraine as one of timing.

Starting today, the three-day truce coincides with Russia's lavish celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany.

The main event will be a huge military Victory Day parade on Red Square on Friday, where the Russian president will be welcoming more than two dozen world leaders, including China's Xi Jinping.

Members of the delegations, led by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, attend a welcoming ceremony before their talks at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, May 8, 2025.

Members of the delegations, led by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, attend a welcoming ceremony in Moscow.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed the ceasefire proposal as theatre, and a cynical ploy by Mr Putin to protect his parade, rather than human lives.

Ukraine claims Russia has breached the ceasefire, launching guided bombs on the Sumy region on three occasions, but it is unlikely there will be any retaliation at the moment.

It's certainly true that the Kremlin wants to put on a good show - not just for its guests but for the rest of the world.

The arrival of so many heads of state, including the leaders of Brazil, Egypt and Vietnam - is a major PR coup for Moscow, and a chance to show the West that its efforts to isolate Russia have failed.