Russia marks VE Day anniversary in style

SOLDIERS marched and medal-bedecked veterans waved from military trucks rolling down a main Moscow street lined with police and overflown by helicopters yesterday, as Russia began a pomp-filled, high-security celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Allied victory over Nazi Germany.

Dozens of foreign leaders, including Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, have been invited to today’s ceremonies, prompting some of the strictest security measures Moscow has seen.

City authorities had long been urging Muscovites to leave town over the weekend, as some parts of the city centre as well as roads leading to airports were blocked off and accessible only to people with special passes.