Ceremonies have taken place in St Petersburg to mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the deadly World War Two siege of Leningrad, as the Russian city was then known.
Honour guards began a military parade, carrying the banners of the Soviet Fronts that fought for the city against Nazi Germany |
Modern tanks rolled through the heart of St Petersburg - Russia's second-largest city and a former capital |
Famed WW2-era T-34 battle tanks also participated in the ceremonies |
As well as soldiers dressed in WW2 Soviet uniforms |
Military jets made an overfly over the northern city |
The siege lasted 872 days - from 8 September 1941 to 27 January 1944 |
Earlier, Russians laid flowers to the victims of the siege. About 800,000 people died during the two-and-a-half-year blockade |