Context: This was the fourth consecutive year that Aleksandr Lukashenko had attended the Victory Day parade in Moscow. For this reason, the ceremonial events in Belarus took place in the evening, after those in Moscow. Until 2023, Lukashenko rarely attended the May 9 celebrations in Moscow and preferred to celebrate the day in Belarus. However, in 2025, he stated that it was a tradition to celebrate the day in Russia, a claim that we have already debunked. The heads of Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Laos, and Malaysia also accompanied Vladimir Putin on Red Square this year. With U.S. mediation, Russia and Ukraine agreed to a temporary truce for those days.
Radio Minsk: No May 9
Kirill Kazakov, editor-in-chief of Minskiy Kurier, is notorious for proposing to prosecute a mother who said that a school lesson about the burning of Khatyn village residents alive had frightened her six-year-old child, as well as for calling for the shooting of the late popular blogger Mikita Melkaziorau. Kazakov has come up with a new proposal. On May 5, 2026, he called for citizens to be tried for “denying May 9” on Radio Minsk. Justifying his position, he stated:
“I understand that if we lose May 9, we risk losing a crucial part of our state’s foundation. Note that May 9 [Victory Day] is not observed in Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, or Estonia. They celebrate May 8 – Europe Day.”
This statement contains several errors. In the European Union, Europe Day is celebrated on May 9, not May 8. At the same time, Ukraine and the Baltic States have their own commemorative dates marking the end of World War II and the victory over Nazism. On May 8, they commemorate the Day of Remembrance for the Victims of World War II. In Estonia, this day is known as the Day of the End of World War II. In this country, the Day of Remembrance for Victims of Communism and Nazism is observed in August.
Indeed, there is a difference between the European and Soviet versions of May 8 and May 9. In the European tradition, it is a day of mourning and remembrance for the dead rather than a time for celebrating with military parades. This day is also celebrated nationwide, with people laying flowers on the graves of those who died in World War II.
The difference in dates does not imply a historical contradiction. The German Instrument of Surrender was signed on the night of 8–9 May. It came into force at 23:01 Central European Time on May 8, which was 01:01 Moscow Time on May 9. Therefore, although the commemorative dates of May 8 and 9 relate to one historical event, they reflect different traditions of its interpretation.
CTV: Commemorations are outlawed
CTV used this topic to make another claim: that all Victory Day celebrations and commemorative events, including laying flowers at the Bronze Soldier monument in Tallinn, are prohibited in Estonia.
“In modern Estonia, any celebrations or commemorations of the day Europe was liberated from fascism 81 years ago are forbidden,” said Yulia Alekseyuk, host of the Novosti 24 chasa show, in a May 5, 2026 story titled “War on History.”
“Anything that reminds people of this holiday will be subject to repression, as will those who refuse to forget the price of victory. Therefore, all mass marches, demonstrations, rallies, and meetings will be illegal in the country on May 8, 9, and 10. Using Soviet symbols or laying flowers is strictly prohibited. The police will be watching closely,” co-host Igor Poznyak continued.
It doesn’t align with the facts. No one has forbidden Estonian residents from laying flowers on May 9. For example, people came to the monument for Soviet soldiers who fell in World War II in Tallinn in 2026. Flowers were also laid in Narva. In previous years, locals also brought flowers to the monuments in large numbers.
The restrictions in Estonia have nothing to do with remembering the dead or laying flowers. It is prohibited to use the holiday for the propaganda of war, for example, by displaying symbols such as Z and V, the St. George's ribbon, flags of Russia and the Soviet Union, flags of so-called “people’s republics,” as well as military uniforms and equipment. These restrictions have been in place since the start of the war in Ukraine, and no new bans have been introduced this year.