Victory Day in Moscow: Military Display, Foreign Leaders, and Ominous Warnings

Russia marked the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II with a large-scale military parade on Moscow's Red Square. Security was unusually tight due to fears of a potential Ukrainian drone attack, leading to restricted internet access and limited entry to the city center.

The parade, the largest since the onset of the war in Ukraine three years ago, was overseen for the first time by Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov. President Vladimir Putin, addressing the crowd, emphasized the significance of May 9 as a national holiday and condemned attempts to reinterpret World War II history. He framed Russia as a bulwark against Nazism, Russophobia, and anti-Semitism.

After Putin’s speech, honorary military units from China, Egypt, Azerbaijan, Myanmar, Laos, and others participated in the parade, followed by various Russian combat formations, including a unit of veterans from the ongoing war against Ukraine.

The mechanized section opened with the iconic Soviet T-34 tank, succeeded by modern equipment. First came the Tiger-M light armored vehicles, followed by BMP-2M infantry fighting vehicles. The first contemporary tank to appear was the T-72-B3, an upgraded Soviet model equipped with a more advanced firing system, 125mm guns, high-energy ammunition, and the Relict dynamic protection system.

Next was the T-80, featuring a gas turbine engine, and the T-90M with its 125mm cannon, reactive armor, and 1130-hp V12 diesel engine. Weighing 47 tons, the T-90M has a top speed of 60 km/h.

For the first time, the "Malva" self-propelled artillery system appeared, mounted on a wheeled chassis and armed with a 152mm cannon, capable of firing up to seven rounds per minute.

The parade continued with rocket artillery, including the "Tornado-S," a modernized successor to the "Katyusha." The Tornado-S system can deploy rockets in 122mm, 220mm, or 300mm calibers, firing 15, 8, and 6 missiles, respectively.

Following this was the Iskander-M tactical ballistic missile system. Equipped with a range of conventional and nuclear warheads, it can carry explosive fragmentation, cluster, or thermobaric charges, as well as tactical nuclear bombs with yields between 10 and 50 kilotons.

The drone segment included the Iranian-made Shahed 129, used by Russia under the name "Geran," which has seen extensive deployment against Ukraine.

Air defense was represented by the S-400, Russia's premier anti-aircraft missile system with a range of 40 to 400 kilometers and the capability to intercept ballistic missiles and satellites at altitudes up to 185 km.

The final ground component was the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile. The RS-24 Yars is a key element of Russia's nuclear arsenal, capable of carrying four nuclear warheads of 250 kilotons each. It has a range of 11,000 km and is a more advanced version of the Topol-M missile.

In the air segment, Su-25 jets released smoke in the colors of the Russian flag, followed by the elite "Russian Knights" flying Su-30SM fighters and the "Strizhi" group piloting MiG-29s. Notably absent were heavy bombers such as the Tu-160 and helicopters like the Ka-52.

Following the parade, Putin personally congratulated military officers, paying particular attention to representatives from North Korea, which has supported Russia in its war against Ukraine.

Since the start of the conflict, the Victory Day parade has undergone significant changes. In 2022, aircraft were absent, and in 2023, tanks and heavy equipment did not participate. By 2024, a limited number of armored vehicles were showcased, with nuclear-capable systems like the Iskander-M and Yars remaining prominent.

Foreign Leaders Present

This year's parade was attended by 28 foreign leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Other notable guests included Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the Communist Party of Vietnam’s General Secretary Tho Lam, and Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, the only EU leader present. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic was the sole representative from the Balkans.

In contrast, no foreign leaders were present in 2022, while the 2023 event included leaders from Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Armenia. The 2024 parade saw the return of those leaders and the addition of representatives from Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Cuba, Laos, and Guinea-Bissau.

The 9th of May has grown to symbolize Russia’s resurgence as a global military power, a stark contrast to the 1990s when the parade was not held. Ukraine, which celebrated May 9 until 2013, shifted the holiday to May 8 following the 2014 annexation of Crimea. Moldova also ceased to officially observe the holiday in 2023.