Vladimir Putin claimed Russia is embroiled in a "real war" with the West in his Victory Day speech.
During the 10-minute speech, the tyrant repeated previous claims about the war in Ukraine - which has seen almost 200,000 Russians slaughtered.
He told the crowd: "Soldiers and seamen, and officers, generals, admirals, fighters and commanders, to all participants of the special military operation, I congratulate you on Victory Day [...]
"It is the celebration to honour our fathers and grandfathers who fought for their motherland and through their sacrifice they saved the world from Nazism."
Putin has repeatedly tried to sell the invasion of Ukraine as a glorified repeat of WWII, and continues to tell Russians that the "special military operation" is needed to unshackle the Donbas region from its Nazi overlords in Kyiv and the West.
"Today civilisation is once again at a decisive turning point," Mr Putin said.
"A real war has been unleashed against our Motherland."
He added: "Today we have a real war waged against us but we will be defending outself from terrorism, we will defend the citizens of Donbas."
Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February last year and has maintained an aggressive stance ever since, with the murder of innocent civlians and horrendous war crimes all recorded in a catalogue of abuses.
Putin continued to take swipes at the West, claiming that Kyiv's allies have forgotten about their history and that Moscow still deserves homage for something that happened 78 years ago.
He said: "They have forgotten who destroyed the evil. Who defended their motherlands, who liberated the people of Europe."
The despot was also seen carrying a briefcase with the codes to launch a nuclear attack.
His nuclear briefcase - also known as the nuclear football - was carried by an aide as Putin arrived at Red Square for today's Victory Day parade.
Snipers were visible on Red Square as Putin presided over the massive military parade which today marks the 78th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany in the Second World War.
Moments before the parade began, Russia unleashed a barrage of cruise missiles on Ukraine.
After Putin's remarks, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “There is only one person who is responsible for the illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, and that is President Putin.
“The crimes that are being committed are appalling.
“That is why it is right that we remain steadfast in supporting the people of Ukraine to stand up to that aggression. That’s what the United Kingdom will continue to do.”
Victory Day is one of Russia's most important annual holidays, which commemorates the defeat of Nazi Germany in WWII.
This year, the event is markedly scaled down with tighter security restrictions because the Kremlin is terrified of publicising resistance to the war in Ukraine.
The Kremlin's forces launched 25 missiles overnight in a wave of attacks across Ukraine, the Ukrainian air force said, adding that air defense had successfully destroyed 23 of them.
In a Telegram post, the air force said eight Kalibr cruise missiles were launched from carriers in the Black Sea toward the east and 17 from strategic aircraft.
The barrage comes as Moscow and other Russian cities are preparing to host military parades and other festivities marking Victory Day, Russia's biggest secular holiday that this year has been significantly overshadowed by the war in Ukraine.
At least 21 Russian cities canceled May 9 military parades - the staple of celebrations across Russia - for the first time in years.
The Immortal Regiment processions, in which crowds take to the streets holding portraits of relatives who died or served in World War II - another pillar of the holiday - have also been canceled in multiple cities.
Regional officials blamed unspecified "security concerns."
Some speculated, however, that the reason behind canceling Immortal Regiment marches was the fact that Russians might bring portraits of relatives who died in Ukraine to those processions, illustrating the scale of Russia's losses in the drawn-out conflict.
Moscow is expected to project a show of force during its flagship parade on 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 on Monday officials confirmed that leaders of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan were heading to Moscow as well.
The pared-down celebrations come after ambiguous official reports last week that two Ukrainian drones flew into the heart of Moscow under the cover of darkness and reached the Kremlin before being shot down.
The Kremlin billed it as an attempt at Putin's life; Ukraine denied involvement.
