KIEV, Ukraine – With Ukraine in the midst of a tense and often nasty presidential election campaign, it seems even the calendar is no longer safe from political manipulation.

Ukraine yesterday celebrated the country’s liberation from Nazi Germany 60 years ago with Soviet-style pomp, as hundreds of fresh-faced military cadets marched along Kiev’s main street behind a vintage T-34 tank and the hammer-and-sickle flag raised over the Reichstag after the fall of Berlin in May of 1945.

The outgoing president, Leonid Kuchma, watched the parade alongside the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and his chosen successor, the Ukrainian prime minister, Viktor Yanukovich.

There was, however, one glaring problem with the parade – Ukraine was actually liberated from the Nazis on November 6. In a move critics say was meant as a show of force to deter protests before the October 31 vote, authorities announced last month they would be moving the parade forward to three days before the election.

It was only the latest move in a fierce campaign marked by bizarre twists and allegations of government vote-rigging.

After two terms in office, Mr. Kuchma – frequently charged with running a corrupt and authoritarian regime – is not allowed to run again. He has thrown his support behind Mr. Yanukovich, who promises to carry on Mr. Kuchma’s legacy and promote closer ties with Russia. Polls show Mr. Yanukovich neck-and-neck with the liberal candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, who denounces current government officials as “bandits” and favors closer ties with the West. Neither candidate is expected to win an outright majority on Sunday and a runoff vote is scheduled for November 21.

Observers are describing the upcoming vote as a benchmark in modern Ukrainian history. In the 13 years since its independence from the Soviet Union, Ukraine has played a delicate balancing act between Moscow – which is a major trading partner and traditional ally – and the West, which promises integration with the European Union and NATO.

Russia, keen to protect its interests here, has openly supported Mr. Yanukovich. Mr. Putin spent three days in Kiev this week and praised his policies during an hour-long appearance on Ukrainian TV. Mr. Yanukovich has promised to introduce Russian as the second official language and has accused Mr. Yushchenko of being a pawn of the West.

“This is a crucial vote, it will have a lot to do with whether Ukraine goes further East or West in the next 10 years,” said the executive director of the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, Tamara Gallo Olexy. Mrs. Gallo Olexy, who lives in New York’s East Village, is in Ukraine along with about 100 other Ukrainian-Americans acting as election observers on Sunday.

Despite the stakes, the issues of the campaign have been largely overshadowed by allegations of vote-rigging and dirty campaign tactics.

Critics have accused Mr. Kuchma of using his tight grip on the press to ensure positive coverage of Mr. Yanukovich. Ukraine’s main TV stations, all controlled by the government or pro-government forces, have given Mr. Yanukovich blanket coverage while barely mentioning Mr. Yushchenko, except negatively. The sole channel covering Mr. Yushchenko’s campaign, Fifth Channel, has seen regional affiliates shut down and threats to have its broadcasting license revoked. Reporters at the station are now on a hunger strike to protest the moves.

“We are the only channel trying to show both sides in this election, trying to report the news, so the government is afraid of us,” said one of the channel’s reporters, Svyatoslav Tsegolko.

Mr. Yanukovich has also been accused of using government resources to further his campaign. While his supporters regularly hold rallies in government offices, the Yushchenko campaign has seen its plane denied permission to land at regional airports and its buses denied access to certain towns.

In the most bizarre incident, Mr. Yushchenko fell ill at the height of the campaign and accused authorities of trying to assassinate him. After a month in the hospital, he only recently returned to the campaign trail.

As he spoke to supporters at a rally Wednesday in the city of Cherkasy, about 125 miles south of Kiev, it was clear that Mr. Yushchenko has not fully recovered. His face remains swollen and covered with lesions.

Speaking to reporters before the rally, Mr. Yushchenko defended himself from allegations that he will sell out Ukraine to Western interests.

“I am not a pro-American politician. I’m happy not to be a pro-Russian politician. I’m a purely Ukrainian politician,” he said. “If our interests lie in the West, I will speak of opportunities in the West, and I will do the same for the East.”

Mr. Yushchenko also accused Mr. Yanukovich of trying to “divide and conquer” Ukraine by portraying him as a Ukrainian nationalist. Mr. Yushchenko’s support lies mainly in western Ukrainian while Mr. Yanukovich is more popular is the east, largely populated by Russian speakers.

Economic policy has also played a key role in the campaign, with Mr. Yushchenko vowing to create 5 million new jobs and to crack down on the powerful oligarchs who control much of the country’s wealth.

Mr. Yanukovich has vowed to raise living standards in this country of 48 million and his campaign has benefited greatly from the government’s decision last month to increase monthly pensions by 70% to $52. Supporters say the pension increase proves Mr. Yanukovich can deliver on his promises.

“Yushchenko is all talk. Yanukovich has already shown what he can do. He promised he would raise pensions and that’s what he did,” said a 43-year-old construction worker, Mikola Krayilov.

Tensions are high in Kiev ahead of Sunday’s vote, with Mr. Yushchenko promising to bring 100,000 supporters to the streets if it appears the vote was falsified. Authorities have already cracked down on some opposition groups, arresting dozens of activists on charges of planning an armed insurrection.

Mr. Yanukovich warned opposition leaders yesterday that they may face arrest if they continue to call for public action.

“We can express our opinions only in a peaceful manner through the ballot box,” he told reporters. “Those who incite people to engage in illegal acts will be subject to Ukrainian law. Let them remember that.”