Russia's ‘Immortal Regiment’ is going virtual this year because of the coronavirus pandemic

Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Russia’s 75th anniversary “Immortal Regiment” parade, honoring veterans of World War II, will take place in the form of a virtual march. 

Sergey Makarov, the co-chairman of the “Immortal Regiment of Russia” movement’s central headquarters, made the announcement. Those who wish to participate in the online procession will need to fill out an information form, and upload a photo of themselves, along with a snapshot of their veteran relative, on the project's website or social networking pages, he explained.

The photographs uploaded to this database will be put together in an automatically generated video sequence, which “will allow people to walk alongside the figures of their fathers, grandfathers, and great-grandfathers in a virtual system.”

This virtual march will be broadcast on television channels, media screens, and various online platforms, Makarov said, beginning at 11 a.m. in the Russian Far East (GMT+10) on May 9.

• On April 16, President Vladimir Putin announced that this year’s events marking the 75th anniversary of Soviet victory in World War II, including the annual Victory Day parade, will be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While Putin promised that the parade will still take place sometime this year, a new date has yet to be announced. 
• Federal lawmakers have also announced that they are not planning to adopt legislation allowing for a general amnesty of certain prisoners on Victory Day, breaking with a policy that’s been a tradition since the mid-1990s.