fall celebrations for victory day across russia to remember the enormous sacrifices german the second world war and so on our veterans who held the nazi defeat. didn't ukraine the holidays mauled by national institute the local veterans got into it is not secure a vacation possible the best of the country. as nature is ongoing the bombing of libya fails to ease finally gave the lifeline for the throngs the mounting calls to bear raids as triggering protests in some coalition countries. and america's gains

on the street mean the only growing military intervention in iraq as speculation grows that the u.s. presence could stretch beyond the withdrawal deadline. a very warm welcome to you this is a lie from moscow with me alice have heard now it's a bittersweet holiday for russia as the country mark sixty six years since defeat of nazi germany twenty seven a million soviet people died in the struggle to repel an invasion and the eventual liberation of europe lost his bid to hold the husband watching the anniversary celebrations. i'm here at victory paul just in the center of moscow where there's that's of people enjoying the summer sunshine the start of summer sunshine here also see many many veterans of world war two walking around with their medals some of them taking a bit of shade under

a tree that we've seen groups of families covering round them giving them the kind of attention you usually see reserved for a rock star an actor these days people listening to the details of what went on during the second world war but they got underway of course with a huge parade on red square parades in its way around russia as well i want to red square though the big one over twenty thousand around twenty thousand soldiers taking part over one hundred bits of military hardware as well as a craft fly by making it a really spectacular event now the people who are here are getting ready and waiting for the evening celebrations taking part in taking place in the form of a huge fire you expect ocular which is really something to see if you've never seen it before no reason it's world war two stores of the stores up this kind of. outcry about celebration it ended in the remembered for those that gave their lives his it was a wall that affected not just the soldiers that forte not in those fossils but also on the home front and my colleagues said a first spoke to some people in the kaluga region of russia who live in nazi

occupied parts of the soviet union. it was how i felt like an end of the world everything was on fire burning exploding all around trees were on fire and weapons her house was burning and crushing news was terrible people were running around here in their kitchen in their building as down it's too hard for me to look back and get time. just eleven years old when the germans invaded and miller witnessed first hand nazi brutality against civilians but. i remember the radio host who for every last really confined is family he had someone who are the judge comes to reship was. known as the barber russet jurisdiction decree nazi soldiers were exempted from prosecution if they committed a crime against the soviet people and were encouraged in the murders of the jewish and slavic civilians it is war of annihilation and his instructions based on racial

ideologies carried out with devastating severity among the archives here and killing of thousands of documents detailing some of the atrocities carried out by german occupiers against the citizens we've read some hiring accounts from children whose parents have been killed and we also found an advertisement that went up in the city. by one of the citizens and for that twenty people are going to be killed now they wouldn't have known he was guilty but it says at the bottom here for anything similar is tried again the punishment would be even worse. during the occupation thousands of children were rounded up like cattle and west to work in the german lady cance. who were never called by names just by our numbers in each barrack or surrounded with barbed wire with bright yellow sand around it but it was through torrents in the sand the children

would reach out for those nice looking toys and be like trick you to there were also taking blood from the children to use for the treatment of german officers nazi propaganda films praised the friendship mean and showing locals and germans working hand in hand those who were there to witness the reality spawned incredulously the group together women and children from nearby villages they were pushed into beast mode and then set on fire a lot of people died that way nazi callate he would eventually priest self-defeating creating an attitude of hatred and stubborn resistance among the conquered people the young girl trapped behind german lines writes to her father in the red army their blood thirsty monsters you can't even call them human kill them partner kill the enemy sarah r.t. kaluga region. more events are expected to take place the rest of may the knife but

the parade which began the celebration this morning remains the highlights. well this parade will be remembered for the record number of troops marching through red square almost twice as many as last year it was also fifty minutes longer than the sixty fifth anniversary parades marking victory over nazi germany where you can watch the spectacular info on our web site which is a mighty dot com also there you can hear fast hand accounts of the war for veterans who make this holiday possible as we.

now russia and britain struggled side by side during the ward says some tough memories british ships plowed through the icy waters all of the northern seas delivering vital supplies to the soviet union let's go live to london now where you are and it's all in commemorations there for us good to speak. what is happening in the u.k. it's a mock the celebrations. well of course it's victory in europe day on the eighth of may but there are celebrations here particularly in london on the ninth of may and one of them is to commemorate the veterans of the arctic convoys that you mentioned here in london there is one of the arctic convoys ships more permanently on the river the h.m.s. belfast and there is a ceremony on board that ship to all of the surviving and the veterans who unfortunately didn't make it all of those arctic convoys which of course delivers supplies to the northern ports in russia too aren't girls going for more months

vice all supplies that helped the russians with their fight against naziism now i've caught one of those veterans with me here today citizen who didn't serve on the action as belfast but he served on a different ship during those times mr tiffin tell me what you did while you were in the arctic convoy. was destruction. with other ships of course. we bring a lot of the ship heavy crude into congress as well as we took over niger position but. other various smaller across which so he's got a very very oh. i may not remember one particular time that. we're going to encounter the storm that was so. sudden why it's not you know hunger for oh oh oh over us because it was coming down so it was it was actually creating it

was cold and we both thought at the time that. in that particular you know in taking photos sort of iraq and it was the coldest point so it had here is a lot of people could not remember it being called. up when the mindcrime boys much and ships went on through instruments and never has popes way put forward so it's more of a cipher caught in the entrances sort but. i remember once on it was tight can accomplish for and it was not so one o'clock in the moment very much and three months on it was it was it was it was because it was not a lot so many ships. and all of a sudden we had something. that actually stopped us for

a second. and then there was right into shouting no and we think oh i so so on that would have sucked right. on the pounds of the ship with the star the plane and the time we covered. i think i was about six or eight. or something when. i just was writing from fourteen to sixteen and i was under the supervision of the physical writing exercise of the preaching of. course it was a bus trip that was in the corporate and it all comes from corporate fraud because the damage control parties rushed in and short of the rocks but was one of them about the boats on top and they called it the most dangerous journey in the world and you were practically a boy seaman yourself i understand you were under age when you joined us yes i was

because. i was working enough for you and. obviously princes are money employees of course and the trouble was soon allowed me to go about extra money for proof of work. which was called dutch through and russian but nevertheless you gave it up and you volunteered to be on the arctic convoys yes missing and i'm so sorry we're out of time going to have to stop me but thank you so much for your contribution and do you feel that the russian and u.k. cooperation was was the deciding factor in the ending of those are actually just us ok thank you so much for coming along that was a friend who was a veteran of the arctic convoys will take you back now to your celebrations in moscow we hope you have a good day for your many thanks to you and your guest the star in those memories with us many thanks. well the legacy of the soviet union's war sunday distil has the power to ignite both supporters and critics later this hour

a leading war historian assesses stalin's contribution to sealing victory. well we're covering the victory day celebrations across russia throughout the day and make sure your cheering did it six pm g.m.t. would be spectacular from my work displays will kick off across moscow. now the legacy of the soviet union's wartime leader still has the power to ignite supporters and critics in asia this hour a leading war historian is you can say yes it's time his contribution to sealing victory. start with his leadership with his contribution it's very possible maybe maybe quite probable that the soviet union would have lost. to me is the symbol. that holds the whole country

together completely in principle early months when the usual so that now you start the soviet war the fact that the whole your if we both wish around about iran to use abilities as little knowledge of the mystery field nature of these three most important figure will be in the twentieth century the most important people of the twentieth century or so but you know most of the very critical or you know particularly the many crimes that were committed. the first thing that he should be criticized for is a dictatorial rule. are . now in order for one regards victory day as a cause for celebration of western ukraine nationalist party members a disrupted a memorial service as

a veterans pay tribute to those who perished in the war well all season hearing that some of the veterans have been assaulted with abusive romney logs being held of them and this is the breaking news that we're getting here at r.t. and lace up but likely join our correspondent alexei yet to share ski who's that and he'll tell us more about what's happening as we continue to receive information on this story currently breaking in western ukraine. well we are covering the victory day celebrations across russia throughout the day and make sure you are cheering did it six pm g.m.t. when the spectacular follow work displays will kickoff across. ok to other news now and in libya fierce fighting continues in the city of misrata the rebel stronghold that's been under siege for weeks over two thousand nato

coalition air strikes launched since the beginning of the allied intervention have so far failed to topple colonel gadhafi forces i bet it is discovering how some of those involved in the campaign to get harder to justify the cost. for those who joined the fight in libya the cost of conflict is quickly taking off denmark's one of just six nato members conducting air strikes to enforce the no fly zone it's six f. sixteen fighter planes are racking up a hefty bill of thirteen and a half million dollars a month over anticipating a number i was considering and that we aren't that many nations that is using. let's take us for example they're using drones they have had a tomahawk missile but i don't have any idea what denmark dropped one hundred twenty six precision bombs in the first fortnight of the campaign each one costs on

average fifty thousand dollars on top of that there's one point six million a month the station the jets in sicily along with one hundred thirty personnel at this rate denmark's annual cost will be one hundred seventy million dollars four percent of its defense budget then is air force refuses to comment on the money saying it's too political a topic parliament says it can afford it these people have come to the american embassy to show their opposition to the war it's not just the conflict they're protesting against though it's also denmark's willingness to follow the u.s. into battle. they do this because. i don't know all some people say they have an inferiority complex hell they follow big daddy and yell. words as war against the good of it so they go all. the danish parliament was unanimous in tracking and bombing campaign in libya the first time ever on military action but

since then cracks have appeared with the far left red green alliance with drawing its support it says nato has gone beyond its mandate by taking sides in a civil war now the party fears denmark could. follow suit again with a ground offensive looming i think it's likely because the prime minister wants to be a strongman is precedes this that upcoming election. and also that it's the policy of the current government to be as close to the u.s. as possible at the moment the government's against sending ground forces six f. sixteen s are already costing the same as denmark's troop deployment in afghanistan and they've been there for ten years. but as afghanistan kosovo and iraq all showed when push comes to shove the country's more than willing to join america whichever the cost other than its. copenhagen. well let's

cross that canal to them breaking knees this victory day in western ukraine nationalists been involved in he disrupting a memorial service is veterans pay tribute to those who perished in the wool loss he's lazy or she ask is there for us to test more about what's going on. unlike the scenes we've seen in moscow and everywhere across the former soviet space this doesn't look like a holiday here in the west ukrainian capital city of if in fact it moves more like the hotbed of neo nazis now the local radical nationalist movement gathers several thousand people in the streets of the city trying to hamper the celebrations of those veterans of the great crash or to quarrel now ever since the early morning they blocked off entrances to the cemeteries where the red army soldiers were buried. of course giving no access to the veterans to these cemeteries there has

been lots of verbal and even forceful abuse of these veterans but the activists of the nationalist movement were ripping off the gas' ribbons off the chests of these veterans and sometimes even pushing and shoving the elderly people who are of course over eighty even ninety years old now the tension is still mounting here just about from one hundred meters from where i'm standing right now that's where the nationalists have gathered and they now turned their rage against the police which are here in thousands literally when a new bus carrying more policemen to the to the scene came in they threw rocks at the bus and threw small grenades at them and chanting very harsh slogans like death to the mosque it's death to the communists and glory to the leaders of the insurgent army. ukraine who are seen by many across the form of course of the space as nazi collaborators so these are the scenes in which many of the local residents find us completely disgusting. images that. looks worryingly like part of

a trend doesn't it in some countries why do you think that's happening. certainly this is only a part of a bigger picture across the some countries of the post former of the former soviet space now in the west of ukraine in the baltic states the ninth of may is not celebrated as a holy day at all in fact the people there see this day as not a day of liberation but as a day of oppression and they believe that the soviet period was a worst of the nazi occupation that is of course the minority of the population in these countries but still this is the common notion the glorify the people who are believed by many historians to be collaborators of the nazi forces in ukraine in the one nine hundred forty s. and the acts of use of the t. shirts the flags and posters with pictures of these two leaders the bun bun there and are being clearly the biggest commercial hit in this part of ukraine but still

this is the minority of ukraine of course the whole country is celebrating this day we've seen colorful parade in the capital kiev and this one episode here is definitely mourning the occasion but not spoiling the mood of the people in general ok and next say many thanks for that update from western ukraine of course this story. that many thanks. well we continue our coverage of the victory day celebrations let's now have to volgograd which is renowned for its they're not humans which of ok it's a time part of a sacrifice made by soviet soldiers back then over a million people lost their lives cheering up bloody six month battle against the nazis. was a city that will never forget what it means to find freedom. today

the city is called volgograd but sixty eight years ago it was called stalin grads and it was the scene of one of the largest battles in military history and even today its left its mark spoke physical and spiritual on the city here and its population and it's that feeling that i've been examining in my report. dragged back from the past this old soviet light tankers lay under the mud for sixty eight years it proved too late to stop the nazi invaders reaching the city of starving ground but you still are trying to drive it was called a mass grave it's almost soften it could be pierced by machine gun bullets it was part of the soviet armies which goal to nine hundred forty two were desperately trying to protect stalin's city on the volga from a vast access offensive peter was an eighteen year old cadet as the germans closed in he was read stalin's informants order not to retreat one step back whatever the cost. in the first combat.

that was a baptism of fire. over the next six months the oil and determination of soviet soldiers saved the city and trapped the invading germans and encirclement which destroyed hitler's biggest army since that great victory much has changed stalin grad changed its name to volgograd the soviet union itself collapsed and those who remember the battle and now old. but when it comes to monuments all god made sure the heroism of the moment was set in stone somewhere we're going up you have to be careful here this is the most dangerous part we could be inside a military bunker a metal and concrete certainly make it look like one but we emerged from a panoramic view of the city of volgograd far beneath we've just popped out of the head of the city's iconic mother russia statue in some ways this statue is a metaphor for the war itself a rough and ready construction as practical as the soviet soldiers who fought here

a strength as defiant as the soviet army clung to the banks of the volga. size as vast as the battle that raged around here but many more in mind as abound which are a lot less stylized and a lot more poignant these soldiers weren't buried in solemn ceremony they lie where they fell unseen till now these teams of volunteers have been researching in excavating the battle site for years but it's a cause for a lot of so soldiers are getting very old themselves the documents we flying will decompose we don't dig them up the quicker we do that the better for both the historians and the soldiers relatives. they want to try and record the human stories of the stalingrad battle which claimed as many as two million lives many generals say the war isn't over until the allies bite it is very that's the moto of

every church group so they reckons there are enough. some bones left for even his grandchildren to find the terror and tragedy of these old some sacrifices yet to be revealed this miracle is one of the more concrete reminders of what happened here sixty eight years ago but what they're really digging up isn't just metal and gunpowder it's memories tom watson r.t. the ground region. and our special report next hour r.t. explores the largest military operation of the second world war involving millions of people the battle of. now eight years after the u.s. led military campaign began in iraq it seems the mission why not be able to pack it as expected as america is planning to keep troops in iraq beyond the deadline set for later this year and desire to report nyeri explains there's more to it than a drive for democracy. she is the country clothed in stars and stripes

accessorized with a nobel peace prize winning president pioneering the big d. around the world whether speak clear the united states of america stands with the people of tunisia and supports the democratic aspirations of all people from tunisia. to egypt to libya to washington has said the will of the people must determine the fate of their country. but in iraq where america claims to be transplanting democracy our renewed sense of nationalism has united thousands are against the us we're not supporting the democratic aspirations of people in iraq we haven't been in store for eight years now i mean new iraqi people have wanted us out and we stayed there for their own good that's not democracy. anger over u.s. occupation dates back to the presidency of george w. bush upon his exodus in two thousand and eight washington drafted an agreement

promising all american troops would withdraw from iraq by the end of this here in today's more peaceful iraq critics say the pentagon is stepping up pressure to overstay its welcome and cement its footprint the pentagon is pushing for a military presence after the summer to around twenty two thousand troops where the white house is talking about ten thousand troops so actually there is an agreement is tacit agreement that the u.s. will stay in iraq forty seven thousand u.s. troops still remain in iraq where america's embassy looms large and control over iraq's oil sector is perceived to be the ultimate trophy prize in this eight year war at the very least in order to deny china or any of their perceived intentional rivals control of valuable resources the idea. ingrained in the thing he told these new. washington d.c.

who are still very much in power is that we must control the middle east closed that's where the power comes from experts say the u.s. also wants to remain in the region could keep an eye on syria and contain iran of the with the develop in syria go to the extent that there is a fall of the regime we don't know what kind of regime or maybe they will be. us or any maybe it'll be something even worse if you come our troop draw at this juncture you cannot leave the vacuum iran will just take advantage of a that's from the perception of american interests meanwhile the perception of america's democracy remains somewhat distorted has it been used as a tool to achieve a geo political gains in financial interests in new york or washington in the end listen to the voice of the people growing up or ny r.t. new york i heard you say with a start date on our top stories follows in just a few moments.