In this image provided by the White House, President Bush, right, and Russian President Vladimir Putin laugh during a military parade marking the end of World War II in Moscow's Red Square, Monday, May 9, 2005. (AP Photo/White House, Eric Draper)

U.S. President George Bush and leaders of dozens of other nations, including Germany and Japan, joined Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow for 60th anniversary observance of defeat of Nazi Germany.

Russian fighter jets streaked overhead, and world leaders watched as President Putin paid tribute to the 27 million Soviets who lost their lives in defense of their nation.

The ceremony began with goose-stepping soldiers dressed in ceremonial uniforms, carrying a red flag with a hammer and sickle. War veterans from around the world gathered near Lenin’s tomb for the parade.

Mr. Putin emphasized the Soviet Union’s massive sacrifice, but also thanked its allies for their role in defeating Nazi Germany.

Bush Honors Dead from World War II

President Bush has marked the anniversary of the end of the World War II in Europe with a visit to an American cemetery in the Netherlands.

More than 8,000 Americans are buried here under curving rows of white crosses and Stars of David, with small American and Dutch flags flying before each grave.

A large stone tower stands before a bronze sculpture of a mother grieving for her lost son with the inscription: New Life From War’s Destruction Proclaims Man’s Immortality and Hope for Peace.

Some of those buried here were killed during the liberation of this southern region of the Netherlands late in 1944 when American, British, and Polish troops fought to capture crucial bridges across the Rhine. Others died fighting inside Germany during the Allies’ final push against the Nazis

President Bush met with U.S. and Dutch veterans of that combat during his visit, paying tribute to their courage and the sacrifice of their fallen comrades.

“On this day we celebrate the victory that they won. And we recommit ourselves to the great truth that they defended that freedom is the birthright of all mankind,” said Mr. Bush. “Because of their sacrifice and the help of brave allies that truth prevailed at the close of the 20th Century. As the 21st Century unfolds before us Americans and Europeans are continuing to work together and are bringing hope and freedom to places where it has long been denied, in Afghanistan, in Iraq, in Lebanon and across the broader Middle East.”

The reverence of this somber ceremony at the Netherlands American cemetery contrasts with plans for a triumphant military parade in Moscow Monday when Russian President Vladimir Putin hosts some 50 heads of state celebrating the 60th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany.

During his visit to the Netherlands, President Bush also met with Prime Minister Jan Pieter Balkenende and Queen Beatrix.

Schroeder Asks Forgiveness of Russian People for Horrors of WWII

German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder has asked the Russian people to forgive the suffering Germany inflicted on them and others during World War II.

The German leader said no other country was required to pay as high a cost in the victory against Hitler’s Germany as the former Soviet Union. His comments came in an article in Sunday’s edition of the Russian newspaper .

He noted the loss of more than 27 million lives and called the indescribable destruction in the former Soviet Union “frightening results of World War II”.

Mr. Schroeder said the reconciliation between between Germany and its eastern neighbors, despite the horrors of world war and the later Cold War, is one of the miracles of European history.

The article appeared on the eve of ceremonies in Moscow marking the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe.