De facto leaders of Georgia’s Russian-occupied regions absent from May 9 celebrations in Russia

The May 9 military parade commemorating the 79th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War in Moscow saw the absence of the de facto leaders of Georgia’s Russian-occupied regions, Aslan Bzhania and Alan Gagloev. They reportedly were not invited to attend. 

President Vladimir Putin, as the supreme commander of the Russian army, assumed control of the parade, emphasizing “Victory Day” as a profoundly significant national occasion.

Accompanying Putin were the presidents of Belarus, Guinea-Bissau, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Cuba, and Laos.

Both Bzhania and Gagloev attended the Victory Parade in Moscow in 2020, marking the 75th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War. Since then, Russia has either refrained from inviting foreign state leaders to its May 9 parades or welcomed leaders from CIS countries, such as Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of Armenia in 2023.