Italy Celebrates Victory Day With St. George's Ribbon Campaign

Italy commemorates the Victory Day by the St. George Ribbon campaign to distribute black-and-orange ribbons – a symbol of the Soviet victory in World War II, according to report.

ROME (Sputnik) — Many Italian cities are hosting on Monday the celebratory events commemorating the Victory Day, including the St. George Ribbon campaign to distribute black-and-orange ribbons – a symbol of the Soviet victory in World War II, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported Monday.

May 9 is widely celebrated as Victory Day over Nazi Germany in World War II in Russia and former Soviet republics.

St. George ribbons have been distributed among the residents of Rome, Milan, Naples, Turin and Merano.

Apart from the distribution of the ribbons, activists held Immortal Regiment marches in Rome, Milan and Venice.

Both Italian and Russian citizens have also laid flowers to the tombs of people who died in the battles against Nazism to commemorate their memory across the country.

The orange-and-black-striped ribbons of St. George, symbolize the Soviet contribution to the Allied victory in World War II and mimics the colors of a Soviet-time and later Russian decoration that was awarded for acts of valor on the battlefields of the war.

The Immortal Regiment is a patriotic initiative that commemorates WWII soldiers in marches held across Russia and other countries. During the marches, people carry photographs of their ancestors who participated in the war.