West's absence at parade was wrong

With a military parade in Red Square and other activities over the weekend, Moscow, indeed the whole of Russia, has been remembering the sacrifice the country made in the Great Patriotic War against Nazi Germany (1941-45).

It was reported that Kremlin sent out more than 60 invitations to various world leaders to attend the parade, but less 30 turned up to watch on Saturday.

Sources say the Kremlin sent invitations to Washington, London, Paris, Brussels, Berlin and Tokyo. But the leaders of Russia's key World War II allies, the United States and the United Kingdom, as well as the other leaders all declined to attend.