On May 9, after the Victory Parade on Red Square in Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin may go to Sevastopol for events dedicated to the anniversary of the Victory and the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the city, the Kommersant newspaper wrote on Wednesday, citing a high-ranking source in the Ministry of Defense.

According to the publication’s interlocutor, an event with the participation of the president is on the agenda, but the issue has yet to be agreed upon with the Kremlin administration. A source in the presidential administration did not rule out that after the parade on Red Square, Putin could fly to Crimea to participate in the festivities.

Presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that a visit to Sevastopol is not yet included in Putin’s schedule for May 9. The administration of Sevastopol said that there is no exact information about the arrival of the Russian President in the city yet, but they assured that they would be able to greet him with dignity.

Not only the president, but also Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev may come to Sevastopol on May 9, the online publication Gazeta.ru reported on Wednesday , citing sources. According to the publication, immediately after the events on Red Square, Putin and Medvedev will go to Sevastopol, where they will attend the parade, and then go to Simferopol. Sources of the publication reported that the Kremlin administration has already postponed to the evening of May 8 the reception that the president usually held on May 9 on the occasion of Victory Day. Medvedev's press secretary Natalya Timakova told the publication that the prime minister's schedule currently only includes attending the parade in Moscow.

Putin's visit to Sevastopol will be the first for the president since the annexation of Crimea to Russia. On March 25, Dmitry Peskov said that Putin was not going to visit Crimea in the near future, but “maybe over time.” Dmitry Medvedev had already visited Crimea after the region’s status changed. At the end of March, he held a government meeting in Sevastopol, after which he also visited Simferopol.

Earlier it became known that the Swifts and Russian Knights aerobatics teams, which traditionally performed on Red Square on May 9, would not participate in the parade in Moscow this year. Instead, "Swifts" and "Russian Knights" will take part in the parade in Sevastopol on May 9. On April 28, the pilots of both groups departed from Kubinka near Moscow to Sevastopol for training. Several airfields have been allocated for military aviation near Sevastopol.

About 1,000 military personnel and more than 30 pieces of military equipment will take part in the parade, which will take place on May 9 in the center of Sevastopol, ITAR-TASS previously reported .

Putin may visit Sevastopol on May 9