KATHMANDU: A team from Russia's renowned 7 Summits Club has celebrated Victory Day to the Mt. Everest this spring season, carrying a Victory Banner and a commemorative flag marking 70 years of Russia-Nepal diplomatic relations at the high camps of the world's highest peak.

The Russian Embassy in Kathmandu had presented both flags to the club in April as the team departed for Everest Base Camp — the Victory Banner in honour of the Soviet Union's triumph over Nazi Germany on May 9, 1945, and the diplomatic anniversary flag marking the 70-year partnership between Russia and Nepal established on July 20, 1956.

The expedition was led by Alexander Abramov, president and founder of the 7 Summits Club and one of Russia's most decorated high-altitude mountaineers. A Master of Sports of the USSR in mountaineering, Abramov has summited Everest 12 times — a record among Russian climbers — and has led more than 15 Everest expeditions over three decades. He founded the 7 Summits Club in 2001 to organise international mountaineering expeditions and is widely credited with spearheading the Seven Volcanoes project, which saw climbers scale the highest volcano on each continent.

The summit celebration carries added diplomatic weight this year. Russia and Nepal are marking 70 years of bilateral relations in 2026, with both sides having recently reaffirmed a partnership spanning infrastructure, hydropower, healthcare, and education, while identifying tourism and direct air connectivity as emerging priorities.

Victory Day, observed annually on May 9 in Russia, commemorates the Soviet Union's defeat of Nazi Germany in the Second World War.