Anniversary of the End of WWII in Russia Date in the current year: September 3, 2024

Most European countries celebrate the victory in the Second World War on May 8/9 (depending on the time zone), the day Germany formally surrendered. In Russia and many other former Soviet republics, Victory Day is one of the most important public holidays. However, in 2010 Russian president Dmitry Medvedev decided that anniversary of Japan's capitulation should be observed as a remembrance day. So the new memorial day was established.

The imminent defeat of Japan in WWII became evident in summer 1945. In August, the United States carried out atomic bombings of the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the Soviet Union violated the Soviet-Japanese neutrality pact and invaded Manchukuo, the Japanese puppet state in Northeast China and Inner Mongolia.

These events caused Emperor Hirohito to announce the surrender of Japan. The Empire of Japan officially capitulated on August 15 (12:00 JST), but the formal surrender occurred on September 2 aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay.

Originally, Russia celebrated the end of World War II on September 2. However, in 2020, it was decided to move it to September 3 in order to highlight the final transition from war to peace.