On the evening of May 8, the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Armenia hosted a solemn reception dedicated to the 74th anniversary of the Victory of the Red Army and the USSR in the Great Patriotic War, reports Armenian News-NEWS.am.

The event gathered veterans of the Great Patriotic War, employees of several embassies accredited to Armenia, MPs, as well as representatives of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense of Armenia and NGOs and businessmen.

The Russian and Armenian national anthems were followed by a speech by Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to Armenia Sergey Kopirkin.

“May 9th is a special and truly pan-national day. It is not only a historic date, but also a reminder of the high price that our nations paid for peace. Victory Day is a very important reminder and warning about the inadmissibility of repeating the mistakes that led to a tragedy,” the Russian ambassador declared.

“Russia highly appreciates the federative fraternity that united the Soviet nations. I am glad that I have the honor to celebrate Victory Day here on Armenian land. It is a special honor for me. Soviet Armenia sent more than 600,000 Armenian soldiers, six divisions, four marshals, a navy admiral and more than 100 Soviet heroes, and I especially like to see how Armenians sacredly respect the memory of the war and our heroes," Kopirkin said.

In closing, the ambassador congratulated the veterans and the participants of the reception on Victory Day.