Russian President Vladimir Putin vowed Monday to defend peace and stability in the world in face of new threats such as terrorism, warning that indifference and temporization could result in tragedies.

Delivering a keynote speech at the military parade at Red Square marking the 60th anniversary of Soviet victory over Nazi Germany, Putin said the lessons of the war have served as a warning that indifference and temporization to violence would " inevitably lead to terrible tragedies on a planetary scale."

Faced with the real threat of terrorism today, "it is our duty to defend a world order based on security and justice and on a new culture of relations among nations that will not allow a repeat of any war, neither 'cold' nor 'hot,'" Putin said.

Putin called on countries and peoples around the globe not to let their eyes close to "anything that can become fertile soil for new threats."

As Putin spoke, more than 50 world leaders, including Chinese President Hu Jintao, US President George W. Bush, and war veterans gathered at Red Square for the grandiose parade that featured thousands of soldiers in modern and WW II-era uniforms marching in tight formation and fighter jets flying past over Red Square.

After the parade, the Russian president paid tribute to the fallen soldiers and civilians of the Soviet Union and the veterans in the Great Patriotic War.

"We will always honor all those who fought on the frontlines and those who selflessly toiled in the rear," Putin said.

Historians estimate that in the 1941-1945 Great Patriotic War, some 27 million Soviet combatants and civilians died in bloodbaths such as the battles for defending Stalingrad and Moscow against German troops.

"Russia seeks to build relations that are not only forged by the lessons of the past but that are also reaching out towards our common future, both with our closest neighbors and with all countries of the world," Putin said.