The celebration of Victory Day in Moscow over the Nazis did not include the air show during the military parade in Red Square
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday insisted on the arguments he is making to justify the current offensive against Ukraine: NATO’s deployment along Russia’s borders, the ‘neo-Nazi’ nature of the Ukrainian authorities and the attacks by the Ukrainian army . the self-declared people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. Speaking at the parade commemorating the 77th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in Moscow’s Red Square, Putin defended that “the special military operation” against Ukraine was “the only way for Russia to counter aggression against its territory.” to avoid”.
“Everything indicated that the clash with the neo-Nazis would be inevitable (…) for whom the United States and its minor partners bet,” Putin declared before the troops that had formed before the parade in Red Square. In his words, “we saw the military infrastructure deployed, hundreds of foreign advisers mobilized, regular deliveries of state-of-the-art weapons from NATO countries.”
“Preparations were being made for a new punitive operation in Donbass, for an invasion of our historic lands, including Crimea. In Kiev, they announced the possible acquisition of nuclear weapons,” the Russian president added, referring to the alleged nuclear threat he says emanates from Ukrainian soil.
According to Putin, “the danger grew every day and Russia took a preventive approach to the aggression. It was a forced, timely decision and the only right one. It was the decision of a sovereign, strong and independent country. He insisted that “The Donbass militias, together with the fighters of the Russian army, are fighting in their own country today (…) they are fighting for their homeland, for their future, so that no one learns the lessons of World War II. ”
Contrary to what some analysts had predicted, the Kremlin head did not formally declare war on Ukraine on Monday, which would have implied a “general mobilization decree” to force the male population to enlist and fight in Ukraine. In Kiev, it is estimated that Moscow will at least covertly undertake a mobilization that will boost the stalled offensive in Donbass, the operation’s new stated target after the failed attempts to take Kiev.
The entire Red Square ceremony, including the preliminaries, the presidential speech and the parade itself, lasted about an hour, making it the shortest central Victory Day celebration in recent years. Surprisingly, the air show was suspended at the last minute due to bad weather conditions, Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov explained. This Monday there was a cold wind in Moscow, the temperature did not rise above eight degrees and the sky was cloudy.
But in similar weather, planes and helicopters flew over Red Square on other occasions. This Monday, there was speculation on social networks that although the troops present on the emblematic esplanade were out of ammunition, as is usual in a parade, it could have failed to control weapons in combat aircraft, leading to a potential danger to those present in the gallery. Another suspicion apparently was a fear that the Ukrainians, taking advantage of the fact that the air defense system was being interrupted to allow the parade of planes, would sneak into an attack drone, something military experts deem practically impossible.
The aerial portion of the parade included 77 devices, including the Presidential Plane of the Last Judgment or of the Apocalypse, an Iliushin-80 that Putin would use in the event of a nuclear war to save himself from destruction and from which to launch the war. It seems the idea was to send a signal to the West that Russia would definitely resort to nuclear weapons if necessary. The center of Moscow should also have been flown by Tu-95MS and Tu-160 bombers, by Su-35S fighters, the latest MiG-31I and MiG-31BM aircraft, fifth-generation Su-57 fighters and Tu-22M3 long- range bombers. Mig-29 fighter-bombers planned to draw in the sky the letter “Z”, the tactical symbol that, along with the “V” for victory, is represented by Russian troops fighting in Ukraine.
However, neither on the platform of the Red Square, nor on the uniform of the soldiers, nor on the hull of the tanks and armored vehicles, did any “Z” appear, nor did the “V” appear. Perhaps there was criticism from Kiev and the Russian opposition that they resemble Nazi symbols and that they were used by certain units of the Wehrmacht, the armed forces of Hitler’s Germany.
All this controversy or perhaps the bad weather drove away many Muscovites, who preferred to spend this holiday at the dacha. Except for those involved in the pomp and ceremony, the Russian capital was soulless. One such event was the march called ‘Immortal Battalion’, which anyone can participate in as long as they carry a portrait of someone who died in the Great Patriotic War. Putin joined the procession a few meters as it passed through Red Square.
According to the Russian Defense Ministry, 11,000 men and 131 units of tanks, armored vehicles and other vehicles took part in the parade, as well as 33 groups of various army units. Soldiers from Dombas also marched in front of the podium. War material on display included modern T-90M and Armata tanks, as well as nuclear-capable Iskander-M and YARS missiles. The military parade received overwhelming coverage in the national media and from virtually every corner of the planet.
Source: La Verdad
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