The celebrations in Ivangorod drew crowds of spectators in neighboring Narva, who gathered on the embankment of the river dividing the cities

Crowds of people gathered in the Estonian city of Narva to watch the Victory Day concert and fireworks display held in Russia’s Ivangorod, situated just across the border.

The Estonian authorities banned Victory Day celebrations on May 9, penalizing anyone seen with Soviet or Russian-themed symbols, such as the Ribbon of Saint George.

One of the spectators on the Estonian side of the Narva river told RT on Sunday that compared to previous years, even more people had come to the embankment to see the event. The person said that Victory Day “has always been the most important holiday for us, no matter what.”

Victory Day celebrations across Russia and the world: As it happened (PHOTOS, VIDEOS)

The person added that his boss at work had objected to him going to watch the Victory Day concert, but he went anyway. He explained to RT that his own relatives had fought against Nazi Germany, adding that the “desire to pay homage to our heroes beats fear of any potential punishment” from the Estonian authorities.

As the celebrations unfolded across the river, some Narva residents lit lanterns in greeting to their neighbors in Ivangorod, according to footage sent to RT by a subscriber. She said the gesture has become a local tradition dating back to the coronavirus pandemic, when border crossings became difficult.

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The municipal authorities in Ivangorod told TASS that people across the border were able to watch the event, named ‘The Riverbanks of Victory’ thanks to a large screen mounted on the Russian side of the river. Similar concerts have been held in Ivangorod since 2023.

According to the news agency, citing Ivangorod and Narva residents, many people in Estonia spent several hours in lines at the border just to watch the celebrations on the Russian side.

Aleksandr Drozdenko, the governor of Leningrad Region, where Ivangorod is located, previously told TASS that it was particularly important to the regional authorities that the “concert is also being heard on the other side of the Narva River.”

“We know that there are people there, to whom Victory Day is just as important, and they are waiting for this day,” the Russian official said. According to Drozdenko, “on both riverbanks, people are singing our common songs familiar from childhood,” in what he described as “people’s karaoke.”

The celebration culminated in a bright fireworks display over Ivangorod, watched from both banks of the river.

Meanwhile, the Estonian police reported that at least 20 administrative cases related to Victory Day celebrations were initiated on Sunday, as reported by Delfi media outlet. Most of those involved displays of banned symbols.

The Russian president has said he could meet with Vladimir Zelensky once final agreements have been reached

Victory Day celebrations across Russia and around the world concluded on May 9, while President Vladimir Putin wrapped up a series of meetings with foreign leaders who came to Moscow and spoke to journalists about the Ukraine conflict, Russia-China ties, and other international issues.

“I think the matter is heading towards the completion of the Ukrainian conflict,” the Russian leader said while answering questions from the press. He also did not rule out a possible meeting with Vladimir Zelensky in a third country once final agreements on a settlement are reached.

Here are some further highlights from Putin’s remarks:

Western elites fighting Russia with Ukrainian hands

Putin stated that it is the globalist faction of Western elites that is effectively waging war against Russia, using Ukrainians as proxies.

“We need to make sure that no one is threatening us. This is our goal,” Putin said when asked about the parameters of peace negotiations. He emphasized that Moscow is well aware of Western assistance to Ukraine, particularly with drone technology, but noted that the other side is now looking for ways to establish contact, fully understanding that further escalation could be very costly.

Trump supported Victory Day ceasefire

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US President Donald Trump recalled the common struggle against Nazism during the leaders’ last phone call in late April, when Putin informed him of Russia’s plan to declare a ceasefire for May 8 and 9.

“President Trump supported it,” Putin said. Russia publicly announced the truce, but Kiev instead proposed a ceasefire starting on May 6, which it apparently had no intention of upholding.

The Ukrainian military violated the Victory Day ceasefire on 8,970 occasions after Moscow ordered all of its troops along the front line in Ukraine to halt combat operations and remain in their positions, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

Moscow warned partners about possible retaliatory strike on Kiev

The Russian leader emphasized that Moscow has no desire to escalate or worsen relations with anyone, and that it repeatedly warned its foreign partners about the possible consequences of Kiev’s provocations on Victory Day.

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After Zelensky issued several veiled threats, the Russian Defense Ministry warned that a retaliatory strike on central Kiev would be carried out if attempts were made to disrupt Victory Day events in Moscow, and urged residents and diplomats to leave the Ukrainian capital in advance.

Putin pointed out that all key Ukrainian government and military decision-making centers are located in central Kiev, in close proximity to dozens of foreign diplomatic missions. He said Russia clearly outlined the potential scenario that could unfold, first warning key partners such as China and India.

Moscow also informed Washington about the possible consequences, which Putin believes contributed to Trump’s extended ceasefire initiative.

Ukraine yet to respond to Trump’s POW exchange initiative

Moscow sent Kiev a list of 500 Ukrainian prisoners of war and proposed an exchange back on May 5, but has yet to receive a response, Putin said. When Trump later announced an even larger 1,000-for-1,000 POW swap, “we supported it right away,” Putin added.

According to the Russian president, Ukraine said it needed time to review the proposal and later stated that it was “not prepared” for the exchange.

Putin explains absence of military vehicles at Victory Day parade

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Putin confirmed that this year’s Victory Day parade in Moscow featured no military equipment primarily so that the Russian Armed Forces could fully concentrate on achieving the final defeat of the Ukrainian army.

“We decided that we would definitely hold festive events, but without the demonstration of military equipment. Not only due to security concerns, but above all because the armed forces must focus their attention on the final defeat of the enemy,” Putin said.

The president added that the decision was taken long before any provocative statements from the Ukrainian authorities. The parade on May 9 still included marching servicemen and an aviation flyover.

Putin hopes for restoration of ties with West in future

Putin expressed confidence that Russia would restore relations with many Western countries in the future, even as he blamed Western politicians for triggering the Ukraine conflict.

Seeking to use Ukraine as an instrument of their geopolitical goals, these Western figures deceived everyone, and they’re now publicly admitting it... And they began deceiving us about the West’s eastward expansion back in the early 1990s... All of this, taken together, provoked today’s situation.

The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had never closed the door to negotiations with the EU or Ukraine and mentioned former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder as a preferred intermediary for dialogue.

Russia offered help on Iran nuclear issue

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Moscow had proposed assisting in resolving the Iranian nuclear program issue, including through the export of enriched uranium, as it had successfully done before. Putin noted that this earlier effort played a positive role in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the now-defunct 2015 nuclear agreement with Iran.

According to the president, the United States, Iran, and Israel initially agreed to the idea. However, both Washington and Tehran later hardened their positions: the US demanded that the uranium be sent only to its territory, while Iran proposed creating a joint Russian-Iranian enterprise on its own soil to dilute the uranium. As a result, the situation has reached a complete deadlock.

Moscow will prevail in the Ukraine conflict, which is a Western proxy war, RIAC’s chief has told Going Underground host Afshin Rattansi

Europe has become Russia’s “principal adversary” for the first time since the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, the president of the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), Dmitri Trenin, has told Going Underground host Afshin Rattansi.

In the latest episode of Going Underground, the renowned international affairs expert said that “today, Russia is at war again, and this is not simply a war between Russia and Ukraine” but rather a proxy war against Moscow that is being waged by the West.

According to Trenin, while the US under President Donald Trump has increasingly distanced itself from the Ukraine conflict, European involvement has become progressively more prominent of late. He told Rattansi that elites in European capitals are using a perceived Russian threat in an apparent effort to consolidate the “crumbling” European Union and to “relaunch their economies through militarization.”

“They’re trying, above all, to keep themselves in power” by pushing alarmist narratives regarding Russia, he added.

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Trenin went on to describe Ukrainians as a “part of the bigger Russian nation” that is being “misguided” and “used by the West in [its]… very long war against Russia,” which dates as far back as the 16th century.

The international affairs expert expressed confidence that Russia would eventually accomplish its goals in the conflict, though it would take a long time. He defined Russia’s vision of victory as the vanquishing of neo-Nazi elements within Ukraine, as well as “those forces in Europe, primarily among the elites, that have built Russia into a bogeyman again.”

Commenting on Trump’s attempts at mediation, Trenin claimed that the US president is “essentially powerless to insist on something that is of central importance to ending this conflict,” and so his role is rather limited in defining its course. According to the RIAC president, Trump has apparently been unable to get EU warmongers and the Ukrainian leadership to act on the understanding reached by him and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska, last August.