Europe marks 70 years since Nazi defeat, end of epochal war

PARIS — With quiet moments of memory or military pomp, leaders and ordinary citizens across Europe are marking 70 years since the Nazi defeat and a war that changed the continent forever. But the East-West alliance that vanquished Hitler is deeply divided today.

Russia is celebrating Soviet wartime feats in a ceremony Saturday that is causing diplomatic tensions because of the country’s role in Ukraine’s conflict. Poland has held a ceremony meant as an alternative to Moscow’s.

In Paris, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and the U.S. ambassador to France will join French President Francois Hollande on Friday at the Arc de Triomphe, in a sign of appreciation for the American role in liberating France from German occupation.