Red Square in Moscow is currently flooded with symbols of victory. Large banners bearing the word “Victory,” video projections, and installations commemorate the anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, celebrated in Russia on May 9 as the country’s most important national holiday. However, this year’s military parade will be significantly more modest than in previous years — for the first time in almost two decades, there will be no tanks or missile systems on Red Square, only soldiers.
According to RKS News, the absence of military equipment highlights how much the war in Ukraine is exhausting Russia and how the conflict is not unfolding according to the Kremlin’s plans. Russian MP Yevgeny Popov claimed that tanks are needed more on the front lines than at the parade.
“Our tanks are busy now. They are fighting,” Popov said.
However, many see the scaling back of the parade due to security concerns as a sign of weakness. Ukrainian drones have increasingly targeted locations deep inside Russia in recent months. Just days before the parade, two people were killed and more than 30 injured in a Ukrainian missile and drone attack on the city of Cheboksary. A drone also recently struck a luxury residential building just a few kilometers from the Kremlin.
Russian authorities claim there is a serious threat of Ukrainian attacks during the Victory Day celebrations. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov spoke of a “terrorist threat,” while the Russian Ministry of Defense threatened massive missile strikes on central Kyiv if Moscow were attacked on May 9.
Reactions among Moscow residents are divided. Some believe the absence of tanks makes sense for security reasons, while others think Russia is showing fear.
“The parade is a symbol of our strength. Maybe we should show something after all,” one Moscow resident told RKS News.
The war in Ukraine has now lasted longer than the Soviet Union’s fight against Nazi Germany during World War II, which Russians refer to as the Great Patriotic War. Despite this, Moscow has yet to achieve a decisive victory.
RKS News also reports that war fatigue is growing in Russia, along with dissatisfaction over the rising cost of living and internet restrictions introduced by the authorities under the pretext of protection from Ukrainian drones. Mobile internet access will be further restricted during Victory Day celebrations in Moscow.
In the village of Rublyovo near Moscow, commemorations were held for those killed in World War II, attended by Russian soldiers who fought in Ukraine. One of them said that Russia is a “country of winners” and that it “will always remain so.”
Yet, more than four years after the start of the invasion of Ukraine, the victory promised by the Kremlin still appears far away.
