For four years, May 9 was a day of horror in Ukraine and rebellious militarism in Russia. However, today that has changed. When the whole world is watching the events on Red Square, the story is no longer just about the weapons displays — or lack thereof — but about the high-profile phone calls and meetings that made the event possible.
In an unprecedented move, President Volodymyr Zelensky formally allowed Russia to hold a Victory Day parade in Moscow on May 9 and excluded Red Square from Ukrainian attack plans for the duration of the event.
A decree that humiliates the Kremlin
According to the presidential decree, the decision was made “after taking into account numerous requests” and “for humanitarian reasons” presented in negotiations with the American side on Friday. It allows the parade to take place in Moscow on May 9, 2026 and orders that from 10 Kiev time (9 a.m. Polish time) Red Square was excluded from the “plan to use Ukrainian weapons.”
The document also states: exact GPS coordinates of Red Squarewhich proves that Ukraine has the precision and capabilities to strike the heart of Moscow at any time.
When war broke out four years ago, it seemed almost impossible that Kiev could attack Moscow. The regulation acknowledges that Ukraine, although it already has such an option, does not intend to do so.
Behind the scenes of the agreement: Trump, Miami and the prisoner exchange
Kyiv chooses diplomacy to save people's lives in a war it did not start. How many times could this be said about Russia?
Zelensky clearly stated that Red Square is “less important” than the lives of a thousand Ukrainian prisoners, who are to return home as part of the exchange. Kyiv thus changed the narrative of the war from a defensive narrative to a narrative of conditional support.
The decree was a remarkable culmination to the ceasefire saga around Victory Day in Russia — a process that began with Putin calling Trump asking for a ceasefire, through high-profile talks with Rustem Umerov in Miami, and ended with Zelensky formally authorizing the parade.
This symbolism is devastating for the Kremlin. By establishing a US-brokered “no attack zone” around Red Square, Ukraine made clear that the security of the parade now depends on Kiev.
