Russia Renews Missile Strikes as Putin Declares 'Real War' on Victory Day

Russia has launched another wave of missile strikes, Kyiv has said, as Russian President Vladimir Putin marked Victory Day with a combative address in Moscow.

On Tuesday, the Kremlin's forces launched 25 missiles at targets in Ukraine, Kyiv's defense ministry said in a post to social media. Ukraine's air defenses shot down 23 of these missiles , the government department added.

Moscow fired eight Kalibr missiles at eastern Ukraine from the Black Sea, beginning at around 10 p.m. local time Monday, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said in an update Tuesday morning. All eight were intercepted by Ukraine, the General Staff said.

At around 4 a.m. local time, Russian aircraft then launched 17 Kh-101 and Kh-555 winged missiles, of which 15 were intercepted by air defenses, the General Staff said.

The Ukrainian military said 61 air strikes had also been carried out, adding that there had been "victims," but not giving more details.

The attacks come as Moscow celebrates Victory Day, marking the triumph of Soviet forces over Nazism and the end of World War II. An important event on the Russian calendar, it comes just after VE Day, or Victory in Europe Day, which is observed on May 8.

On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced Ukraine would celebrate "Europe Day" on May 9, moving the holiday to coincide both with European Union observance and with Russia's Victory Day. The holiday was previously observed in Ukraine later in May, but the European Union has always celebrated Europe Day on May 9.

In a scaled-down show Tuesday in Moscow, Putin was joined by several leaders of former Soviet nations, including Armenia and Belarus. He told crowds gathered in the capital's Red Square that "today, civilization is again at a decisive turning point."

"A real war has been unleashed against our homeland ," he continued. "We have repulsed international terrorism, we will protect the inhabitants of Donbas."

Putin added: "We will ensure our security."

Victory Day celebrations in Russia and in Russian-controlled territory, including the annexed Crimean peninsula, had been canceled ahead of Tuesday, with local authorities citing security concerns. As of Saturday, 21 cities had called off their parades, the British defense ministry said over the weekend, predicting a "scaled back" spectacle in the capital.

"The potential for protests and discontent over the Ukraine war are also likely to have influenced the calculus of the Russian leadership," the ministry said in a post on social media on May 6.

On the eve of Victory Day, Ukraine's military and officials said Russia had also launched a barrage of drone attacks at Ukraine, including 35 Iranian-made Shahed unmanned aerial vehicle strikes overnight from Sunday night to Monday morning.

Hanna Maliar, Ukraine's deputy defense minister, said Monday that it was "impossible" to tell whether Russia would embark on renewed attacks on Victory Day, but the "possibility of escalation will always exist, regardless of the date, as long as the war lasts."

"The fact that Russians like to give historical parallels—yes," Maliar wrote on Telegram. "But there were already a lot of historical and festive dates, until which they 'did not escalate.'"

Newsweek has reached out to the Russian defense ministry for comment via email.