2010-09-02 16:40

MOSCOW - Russia on Thursday formally celebrated the last day of the Second World War for the first time.

Earlier this year, President Dmitry Medvedev signed a law about the days of military fame in Russia. This law for the first time included the day of September 2 when Japan surrendered in 1945, thus putting the end to the WWII.

In the far eastern city of Vladivostok, the construction of the Museum of WWII started Thursday, local media reported.

The museum will be devoted to the liberation of Sakhalin and the disputed Kurils islands in the final days of the war. Military parade also took place in this southernmost Russian port. War veterans put a wreath into the sea, according to a naval tradition.

In Tyumen in western Siberia, a 1,800-km car rally hit the road to celebrate the day.

The former Soviet Union declared war on Japan on August 9, 1945. Japanese forces surrendered to the Soviet command on August 18.