We congratulate all our Estonian friends on the celebration of Victory Day. Ambassador Michael C. Polt will join the Estonian people and their leadership inPärnu to commemorate the day, and two U.S. F-15 Eagles will join Estonian aircraft and Polish MIG-29s in a flyover over the parade route at 1200 local time.
Victory Day -- Võidupüha-- is celebrated each June 23 to mark the battle during the War of Independence in which the Estonian military forces and their allies defeated the German forces who sought to re-assert Baltic-German control over the region. The holiday was celebrated from 1934-1939, and was not observed again until the end of the Soviet occupation. Võidupüha marks the contributions of all Estonians in their fight to regain and retain their independence.
