Russian President Vladimir Putin and Commonwealth of Independent States leaders laid wreaths at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Moscow.

Moscow was expected to project a show of force during its flagship Victory Day parade on the city's Red Square, with top-notch military equipment rumbling through it and leaders of ex-Soviet nations standing beside President Vladimir Putin.

Initially, only one of them - Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov - was expected to attend, but at the last minute, officials confirmed that leaders of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan were heading to Moscow as well.