James Waterhouse
Reporting from Kyiv

Putin didn't lay out his strategic vision beyond his already stated goal - to take the whole of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine.

He used language like "soldiers fighting on their own land against fascism" and alluded to his perception that Ukrainians and Russians were of the same blood, the same people.

For the first time in Ukraine's history as an independent country, there aren't any large-scale events marking Victory Day because Ukraine was in the Soviet Union in the Second World War during the victory over Nazi Germany.

Instead, Zelensky posted a video walking down Khreshchatyk, a big commercial street in central Kyiv, and like in Moscow, drawing parallels with the Second World War. He points out anti-tank defences, land mines, road blocks and Ukrainians fighting fascism and ultimately winning.

A lot of eyes in Kyiv would have been on Putin's speech in Red Square but a few hundred miles from here the heavy fighting, bombardment of Ukrainian towns and cities very much continue, so Zelensky won't be making extra room for large-scale celebrations.

Sophie Williams
Reporting from Lviv

It's been confirmed that four missiles have struck the Odesa region.

The military says they were fired from Crimea.

It warns that there is a high probability of continued missile attacks in the region and calls for people to be vigilant and careful.

The Russian leader evoked Soviet heroism in World War Two in his speech earlier.

He said that defending the state when its fate hung in the balance had "always been sacred", and that troops in Ukraine today were fighting for Russia's security.

Image source, Reuters

Here are some more images from Red Square in Moscow, where Vladimir Putin has addressed the Victory Day military parade.

As we've been reporting, he said troops and volunteers in the eastern Ukrainian Donbas region were "fighting for the motherland, its future" and he accused the West of preparing for an "invasion of our land".

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Katarzyna Zysk, a Russian military specialist, tells the BBC News Channel it was no surprise to hear Vladimir Putin linking the current war in Ukraine with World War Two, "glorifying the Soviet past and tapping into the Soviet nostalgia which is quite widespread in Russia and has been fuelled by the Russian authorities".

She says he repeated false accusations against Nato that they planned a nuclear attack and talked of fighting "the invented Ukrainian Nazis".

Zysk says this is part of a plan to portray Russia as a fortress under siege and to indicate any failure in Russia since the 1990s has been the West's fault.

"He puts Russia into this victim role," she says. "This is also in order to justify and make some sense of this war."

She says she was surprised Putin did not mention pro-Western traitors in Russia to make anyone questioning the war a scapegoat.

And she says it was interesting he implied Russia was at war with Nato as well as Ukraine.

Image source, .

Russian President Vladimir Putin said troops and volunteers in the eastern Ukrainian Donbas region were "fighting for the motherland, its future" and he accused the West of preparing for an "invasion of our land".

Putin was speaking at the annual parade on Moscow's Red Square, which marks the anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in the Second World War.

He called Nato "an obvious threat" to Russia and said the Russian military operation had been necessary and the "right decision".

Putin also said the state would do "everything" to take care of families suffering bereavements caused by the Ukraine war.

"The death of every soldier and officer is painful for us," he said.

He finished his speech to cheers from soldiers in Red Square, cannon fire and the Russian national anthem.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has released a video message commemorating victory over Nazi Germany in the Second World War and saying his country will win its war with Russia.

Zelensky also said Ukraine would not give "a single piece of our land" to Russia.

"We are fighting for a new victory. The road to it is difficult but we have no doubt that we will win," he says.

Russia is also marking the anniversary today with its annual Victory Day parades acros the country, which celebrate the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany.

Image source, Reuters

Russia's Victory Day parade, which celebrates the Soviet Union's Second World War victory, is under way in Moscow.

Here's a look at what we're seeing so far.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

If you're watching the 9 May Victory Day parade from a smart TV in Russia there's a good chance you'll have seen the descriptions of TV programmes hacked with an anti-war message. The big channels including Channel One, Rossiya-1 and NTV-Plus were all changed.

Ahead of Victory Day, Russia's air force was busy rehearsing over Red Square, including in Z formation - the motif of the military invasion of Ukraine.

Now we hear from Russian news agencies that the air display part of the parade has been cancelled. Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesman, blamed it on the weather conditions.

Will Vernon
Reporting from Red Square

There was no major announcement in President Putin’s Victory Day speech, as some had anticipated.

But in his address, the Kremlin leader attempted again to justify Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, saying Nato and Ukraine were creating threats “unacceptable to us” on Russia’s borders.

However, most of the world, and international bodies such as the United Nations, consider Russia the aggressor and Moscow’s operation in Ukraine as an illegal invasion.

Image source, Getty Images

Vladimir Putin says the West did not want to listen to Russia, and they had other plans.

The West, he said, without explaining what evidence he had, was preparing for the "invasion of our land, including Crimea".

The Russian leader finished his speech at the Victory Day parade in Moscow with thousands of troops cheering in Red Square. Russia's national anthem was played whilst cannons fired.

Image source, Getty Images

Putin calls for a minute's silence for Russians killed in WWII but also soldiers fighting for Russia in Donbas.

Rusian President Vladimir Putin says over the past year there were tensions with other European nations, and Nato.

He says Russia "urged Europe to find a fair compromise, but they didn't want to hear us" and says they were preparing a punitive operation in Donbas, in eastern Ukraine, where he has said Russia's operations are now focused.

"In Kyiv they were saying they might get nuclear weapons and Nato started exploring the lands close to us and that became an obvious threat to our country and to our borders. Everything was telling us that there is a need to fight."

Putin continues his speech by saying Russia's "special military operation" in Ukraine - what the Kremlin calls the invasion - was a necessary and "timely" measure.

He says it was the "right decision" of an independent, strong, sovereign country.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has started his Victory Day speech in Moscow's Red Square by telling Russian fighters they are fighting for the security of Russia now.

"You are fighting for your motherland, its future," he says.

"The death of every soldier and officer is painful for us," he said. "The state will do everything to take care of these families."

He congratulates veterans on day of "great victory". Victory Day celebrates the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.

Putin is speaking in Moscow's Red Square. We'll bring you the latest here and you can watch in the video stream at the top of this page.

Jenny Hill
Reporting from Moscow

Image source, Reuters

Today is a huge day in the Russian calendar. Victory Day is a special public holiday and the eyes of the world will be on Red Square.

Troops, tanks and nuclear missiles will parade past Vladimir Putin. We expect him to make a speech in which he might give an indication of what he's planning to do next.

Putin hoped to mark Victory Day by presenting a triumph of his own over Ukraine to the Russian people - but it's not happened.

Troops are still battling to achieve Putin's most recently stated aim which is to take the whole of the Donbas region.

There are potentially a number of routes Putin could take - he could dress up territorial gains in south and east of Ukraine for a cause of celebration.

There are reports swirling around Moscow, dismissed by the Kremlin, that he might use Victory Day to declare war on his neighbour - this is still seen as a special military operation in eyes of the Kremlin - which would enable Putin to mobilise reservists to replenish his depleted army.

Putin might use today to reinvigorate public support for his war - it's quite an emotional day for many Russians whose parents and grandparents were among the 27 million Soviets who died in the Second World War.

Putin has repeatedly sought to justify his invasion of Ukraine by saying Nazis in Ukraine are a threat to Russian security, which many of them believe, and today he will most likely try to once again to use Russia's past to justify his present.

Image source, Reuters

The Victory Day parade has begun in Red Square.

To the stirring music of a marching band, soldiers in full dress uniform are carrying Russian and Soviet flags past President Vladimir Putin and other dignitaries.

You can watch live BBC News Channel coverage of the parade by clicking the 'play' button at the top of this page.

Image source, Reuters

If you're just joining us, here are some of the Ukraine war's main developments this morning:

• Victory Day is under way in Russia - the country's biggest public holiday, which celebrates the Soviet Union's Second World War victory
• Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to speak shortly and there's speculation he could use the occasion to make a major announcement about the invasion
• Ukraine's President Zelensky denounced Russia’s heavy shelling in east Ukraine, saying a strike on a school in Luhansk region had killed 60 people. The building was being used as a shelter
• The UK's Ministry of Defence says Russia has been forced to use aging and less reliable weapons as its stockpile of precision-guided munitions runs out

• Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has used Victory Day to call on Russia's leader to end the war in Ukraine immediately