The Immortal Regiment March in Washington D.C. 2025:
A Kremlin-Endorsed Spectacle Masquerading as Remembrance
On May 3, 2025, a march cloaked in nostalgia will snake through the streets of Washington, D.C. to honor Soviet veterans of World War II—or so it claims. For Ukrainian Americans and those familiar with Russia’s imperial playbook, the so-called “Immortal Regiment” is not an innocent memorial. It is a geopolitical operation masked as commemoration. At a time when Russia wages a genocidal war in Ukraine, a march draped in Soviet flags and St. George’s ribbons in the heart of the U.S. capital is not just tone-deaf—it is dangerous. This event is part of a calculated global effort by the Kremlin to inject pro-Russian narratives into Western discourse, undermine democratic societies, and rewrite history in real time.
By Ihor Rosomakha
From Grassroots to Government Propaganda
What started in 2012 in Tomsk, Russia, as a local tribute to veterans has become a transnational tool of influence. The Immortal Regiment was quickly absorbed by the Kremlin and weaponized as a patriotic ritual. By 2015, Vladimir Putin was marching with a portrait of his father, fully integrating the event into Russia’s state ideology.
Gone is the grassroots authenticity. In its place: a state-directed movement aimed at reinforcing a simplified, glorified narrative of Soviet heroism—one that excludes Stalin’s crimes, suppresses dissent, and conveniently omits the millions of Ukrainians, Poles, Balts, and others who suffered under Soviet occupation. In the Kremlin’s version of history, Russia has always been the savior—never the aggressor. And now, that narrative is marching through American cities.
Washington, D.C. 2025: A March of Memory or Menace?
This year’s Immortal Regiment in Washington marks its controversial return since Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Organizers—Russian nationals with ties to state-aligned networks—have planned a march from Lafayette Square to the World War II Memorial. Promotional materials flaunt Soviet symbols and the St. George’s ribbon, a visual hallmark of Russian militarism and occupation.
Despite assurances from organizers, the Washington Metropolitan Police Department has not confirmed whether permits were issued. The lack of transparency is a red flag. Ukrainian Americans recognize this for what it is: an ideological incursion, not an apolitical remembrance. It is a deliberate provocation wrapped in cultural legitimacy.
The Kremlin’s Diaspora Strategy
The Immortal Regiment abroad is not a grassroots diaspora event. It is backed by Kremlin-aligned entities and embassies operating under the guise of culture and memory:
Rossotrudnichestvo, an arm of the Russian Foreign Ministry, funds and coordinates these events under the banner of cultural outreach.
The Russkiy Mir Foundation, tasked with spreading the Russian worldview, bankrolls these initiatives and provides ideological content.
Russian Youth of America (RYA) and KSORS, diaspora organizations with track records of promoting Kremlin-aligned messaging, help execute these marches on U.S. soil.
This is a textbook example of soft power with sharp edges. The goals are unambiguous:
Distort history to paint Russia as the eternal liberator.
Sow discord within diverse democratic societies by activating ethnic nostalgia and identity politics.
Justify present-day aggression by drawing false analogies between WWII and Russia’s imperial war in Ukraine.
St. George’s Ribbon: A Symbol of Occupation and Death
To the uninformed, the St. George’s ribbon may seem like a relic of WWII. To Ukrainians, it is a mark of war crimes. It flew over tanks in Crimea in 2014, fluttered from sniper positions in Donbas, and adorned the uniforms of soldiers who butchered civilians in Bucha. It is a badge of shame, not honor. Allowing it to parade freely in Washington disrespects the victims of Russia’s ongoing war and insults the very principles the United States claims to uphold.
Immortal Regiment Abroad: Propaganda in Disguise
The evidence is clear. From Berlin to Toronto, these marches have featured pro-Kremlin chants, Z-symbols, and messaging that whitewashes war crimes and justifies Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In Germany, authorities have had to regulate or ban these displays. In Canada, the government is investigating links between march organizers and Russian military fundraising. In the U.S., it is time for similar scrutiny.
These events are also deeply offensive to the peoples of the Captive Nations—those Eastern and Central European countries and ethnic groups who suffered under Soviet domination for nearly half a century. For Lithuanians, Estonians, Latvians, Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, Hungarians, Georgians, and others, the Soviet legacy is not one of liberation, but of occupation, repression, and cultural erasure. The Immortal Regiment’s narrative erases their suffering and glorifies the regime that denied them freedom. To allow that distortion to parade openly through the streets of Washington is a betrayal of the very ideals America claims to champion.
A Ukrainian American Call to Action
Ukrainian Americans cannot and will not remain silent while the Kremlin hijacks our history and defiles our pain. We have a duty to act—not only to protect the memory of our ancestors, but to honor the victims of Russia’s 21st-century war crimes.
- Launch Information Campaigns
Publish op-eds, organize press briefings, and flood social media with facts that expose the true nature of these marches.
Educate the public on how WWII memory is being weaponized to justify the invasion of Ukraine.
- Organize Peaceful Counter-Protests
Gather in visible, peaceful demonstrations showcasing the faces and stories of Ukrainians killed by Russian forces.
Carry portraits of those murdered in Bucha, Mariupol, and Kharkiv—not only to challenge the narrative, but to humanize the ongoing genocide.
- Demand Government Action
Call on local and federal officials to investigate the organizers and funding of these marches.
Demand enforcement of laws prohibiting symbols that glorify foreign military aggression.
- Build Broad Coalitions
Form alliances with Baltic, Polish, Georgian, Belarusian, Jewish, and other Captive Nations communities that have also suffered from Russian and Soviet imperialism.
Collaborate with historians, academics, and human rights groups to dismantle the Kremlin’s revisionist myths.
- Educate Relentlessly
Host events, exhibitions, and lectures that tell the full story of WWII—the one Russia wants to bury.
Ensure that students, journalists, and policymakers understand the danger of conflating commemoration with propaganda.
Conclusion: This March Is a Message—We Must Respond
On May 3, the Kremlin will attempt to rewrite history on the streets of America’s capital. The Immortal Regiment is not just about honoring the dead—it is about manipulating the living. Ukrainian Americans must rise to this challenge with resolve, clarity, and unity. We must drown out propaganda with truth, oppose tyranny with memory, and confront this narrative invasion with the courage of those who have fought for freedom before us.
We do not oppose remembrance. We oppose revisionism. We do not deny sacrifice. We demand truth. This is our moment to protect the integrity of history—and the future of our children.
Not in Kyiv. Not in Bucha. Not in Washington. Not on our watch.
