Putin commemorates Stalingrad battle, echoing Ukraine fight

By JIM HEINTZ
Associated Press

MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has attended commemorations of the 80th anniversary of the Soviet victory over Nazi forces in the battle of Stalingrad. It was a long and grueling fight that resonates in the current conflict in Ukraine. Putin laid a wreath on Thursday at the eternal flame of the memorial complex to fallen Red Army soldiers in Volgograd which is the current name of the city. Stalingrad is regarded as the bloodiest battle in history with the death toll for soldiers and civilians reaching as high as 2 million. The Soviet victory was a major turning point in the European theater of World War II and the battle remains an immense point of pride in modern Russia.