Ukraine war: Victory Day celebrations, Wagner 'terrorist group', Russia jet ski ban

Russia commemorates its defeat of Nazi Germany in World War Two on Tuesday.

The annual Victory Day military parade will take place amid heightened security, following a spate of alleged Ukrainian attacks on Russia.

It has taken on great significance since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine last year, with Russian President Vladimir Putin drawing on WW2 rhetoric to rally people behind the war.

After 15 months of bloody conflict, the Russian army appears weakened, as tensions flare up between generals and the Wagner mercenary group, which has played a pivotal role in the battle for the prized Ukrainian city Bakhmut.

In keeping with tradition Putin will give a speech to thousands of soldiers in Moscow's Red Square. At his side will be leaders from former Soviet Republics, though the Russian leader now finds himself isolated in large quarters of the world. 

Like Europe's VE Day on 8 May, the Victory Day Parade was founded in 1945 to celebrate the defeat of Nazi Germany in WW2 or the Great Patriotic War as it is known in Russia. 

Not only does it commemorate the end of the fighting, it also represents Russia's endurance and strength, with the Soviet Union losing 27 million people - more than any other country - in the war. 

Putin has repeatedly likened the fighting in Ukraine to the challenge the Soviet Union faced when Adolf Hitler's Nazis invaded in 1941.

The Victory Day celebrations will take place under reinforced security, amid increasing attacks on Russian territory, which Moscow attributes to Kyiv. 

The most spectacular of which was an alleged two-drone assassination attempt on Putin at the Kremlin last week, though many security experts claimed it was an inside job to "bring the war home" for ordinary Russians. 

Ukraine has denied