AP PHOTOS: On Victory Day, veterans recall the Soviet Union's sacrifice in World War II

MOSCOW (AP) — When she heard the news of Nazi Germany surrendering 80 years ago, Valentina Efremova couldn’t believe the devastating war was over.

Efremova, now 101, was a teenager when Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union in June 1941. She ended up serving as a nurse in field hospitals on the front and remembers the horrors of the fighting all too well.

“When wounded soldiers our age were brought in, I cried. It hurt. I felt so sorry for them. They called me ‘little sister.’ But I pulled myself together. I came from a very disciplined family,” she told The Associated Press from Yakutsk in eastern Siberia.

The Soviet Union lost an estimated 27 million people in what Russians call the “Great Patriotic War” -– a staggering toll that left a lasting imprint on the nation’s collective memory.

Many who served were teenagers when the war began: nurses, communications specialists laying wire under fire, or new recruits deployed to Europe. Some fought in the Far East after Germany’s surrender, in final battles against Japan.

The portraits featured here are of veterans who served in the Soviet military before the breakup of the USSR who are from Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. They were field medics, scouts, radio operators and sappers who dug anti-tank trenches. Some stayed in the military after the war, while others returned home to civilian lives.

Still Russia’s most significant secular holiday, Victory Day on May 9 honors the enormous wartime sacrifices of the Soviet Union. It also serves as a platform for the Kremlin to promote its own brand of patriotism.

President Vladimir Putin, who has led Russia for 25 of the 80 years that have passed since the end of the war, has made Victory Day central to his rule, using it to frame and justify what the Kremlin calls it “a special military operation” in Ukraine.

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This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, looks at World War II veteran Ibragim-Pasha Sadykov, 101, after giving him the Hero of Russia award in the Kremlin's St. Catherine Hall in Moscow, Russia, on Thursday, May 30, 2024. (Vyacheslav Prokofyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

World War II veteran Alexander Medkov poses for a portrait in Volgograd, Russia, on Thursday, May 1, 2025. Medkov was drafted into the Soviet army in 1943 and served as a communications officer. (AP Photo/Alexandr Kulikov)

World War II veteran Maria Rokhlina, 100, poses for a portrait in Moscow, Russia, on Monday, April 28, 2025. Rokhlina volunteered to build defensive lines near the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv and later became a combat medic. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

World War II veteran Fyodor Fedin poses for a portrait in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on Wednesday, April 23, 2025. Fedin joined the Soviet army in 1944 and was a communications operator in an air defense unit. (AP Photo/Anvar Ilyasov)

World War II veteran Vasily Zinchenko, 101, poses for a portrait in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on Wednesday, April 16, 2025. Zinchenko took part in key battles, including the Battle of Stalingrad. (AP Photo/Vladimir Tretyakov)

World War II veteran Olga Savenko, 101, poses for a portrait in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on Wednesday, April 16, 2025. Savenko joined the Soviet army on the front lines in 1941, when she was just 18, and served as a communications operator. (AP Photo/Vladimir Tretyakov)

World War II veteran Kolbai Anafiryaev, 98, poses for a portrait in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. Anafiryaev was drafted into the Soviet army in 1944. (AP Photo/Vladimir Tretyakov)

World War II veteran Tamara Maksimova, 101, poses for a portrait in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. Maksimova volunteered for the Soviet army when she was still a student in high school and became a nurse. (AP Photo/Vladimir Tretyakov)

World War II veteran Mikhail Sukhinin, 97, poses for a portrait in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on Thursday, April 10, 2025. Sukhinin was drafted into the Soviet army in 1944 and served in a rifle regiment. (AP Photo/Vladimir Voronin)

World War II veteran Valentina Efremova, 101, poses for a portrait in Yakutsk, Russia, on Friday, April 18, 2025. Efremova served as a nurse in field hospitals on the front lines. (AP Photo/Roman Kutukov)

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. consumer confidence declined slightly this month as gas prices stayed high and inflation remained elevated, a sharp contrast to soaring stock prices hover near record levels.

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index slipped 0.7 points to 93.1 in May, the first decline after three months of gains. The measure hasn't fallen as much this year as other gauges of consumer attitudes, but it has been stuck at a low level since the pandemic. Before COVID-19, it regularly reached 130.

A separate gauge of consumer sentiment released last week by the University of Michigan fell to a record low this month. Soaring gas and food costs have worsened inflation that is outpacing the average growth in paychecks, reducing most Americans’ purchasing power. Americans have soured on President Trump’s economic policies, polls show, potentially creating problems for Republicans heading into the midterm elections.

Consumer sentiment is mostly gloomy even as the economy is still growing and the unemployment rate has stayed low. Some economists argue that the gap reflects inequality in a “K-shaped” economy, with higher-income Americans benefitting from rising stock prices and still spending while lower-income households struggle.

Tuesday's consumer confidence survey showed that confidence grew among households with incomes at or above $100,000, while it fell for most others.

“The prospect of higher prices and faster inflation continues to loom over confidence readings with many households taking a more cautious approach to purchases this year,” Ben Ayers, Nationwide senior economist, said.

There were some positive signs, Ayers noted: Americans' expectations for growth six months in the future improved, potentially a sign they expect the Iran war to be over by then.

Still, Americans' outlook on the job market worsened slightly. The proportion of respondents who said jobs are “plentiful” dropped to 25.5%, the lowest in three years. At the same time, just 18.6% said jobs were “hard to get,” the smallest percentage since October. The findings reflect the “low-hire, low-fire” job market that has made it harder for those out of work to obtain new jobs.

Gas prices have soared to a nationwide average of $4.49 a gallon from $2.98 just before the war began at the end of February, and have been at or above $4.50 a gallon for nearly all of May.

This month, the Conference Board added special questions to its survey, which found rising prices have caused most Americans to change their spending habits. Two-thirds of respondents said they are cutting back spending in response to the increases, with most of those reducing overall purchases and delaying more expensive acquisitions.

Many consumers are also planning to economize on clothes, shoes, hobby items, and toys and games, the survey found.

Inflation jumped to 3.8% in April, the highest in three years and far above the Federal Reserve's 2% target. In addition to more expensive gas, grocery prices have also started rising more quickly, likely driven by higher shipping costs. Beef prices have also risen sharply, as drought and other factors have reduced cattle herds.

The higher prices are reducing Americans' average inflation-adjusted incomes. Average hourly earnings, adjusted for price changes, shrank in April from a year earlier for the first time in three years.

Other data also suggests consumers have grown more cautious amid rising prices. Adjusted for inflation, retail sales actually declined in April, after a solid increase in March.

And the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index fell to a record-low 44.8 in May, its third straight decline, as a majority of respondents said rising prices were hurting their personal finances.

A motorist swipes a credit card at the pump to pay for gasoline at a gas station, Sunday, May 24, 2026, in Sheridan, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

The per-gallon prices for the various grades of gasoline available at a gas station are displayed on a sign above the pumps, Sunday, May 24, 2026, in southeast Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)