2024 Moscow Victory Day Parade
The 2024 Moscow Victory Day Parade was a military parade held in Red Square, Moscow, Russia, on 9 May 2024, to commemorate the 79th anniversary of Victory Day which celebrates the defeat of Nazi Germany and the end of the Eastern Front of World War II.
Background[edit]
Victory Day is a significant secular holiday in Russia that commemorates Germany's surrender in World War II, which marked the end of one of the deadliest conflicts in human history. The holiday celebrates the military might and moral fortitude of the Red Army, which suffered enormous losses in the war, with at least 20 million Soviet citizens losing their lives. Victory Day has been observed annually on May 9 since 1945, and it is one of the most revered and widely celebrated public holidays in Russia, with parades, fireworks, and concerts held across the country.
Parade summary[edit]
As light flurries of snow fell on Red Square, over 9,000 different troops from 30 various ceremonial regiments marches past the parade stand, 1,000 of which were involved in the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine. Just like the previous Victory Day parade, the mechanized column section only featured one tank, the T-34, but, for the first time in 3 years, there was a return of arial units to the parade, as the Russian Knights aerobatic team flew Su-30 and MiG-29 fighters, followed by 6 Su-25 jets that painted the sky with colored smoke that displayed the flag of Russia. As in prior parades, missile launchers, artillery, and ICBMs were shown. During the parade, Russian soldiers were equipped with what appeared to be drone jammers based off the fear that there would be Ukrainian attacks during the ceremonies. For the first time since the 2015 Moscow Victory Day Parade, a president from an African nation was invited to the parade, as Umaro Sissoco Embaló of Guinea-Bissau was in attendance.
Putin's speech[edit]
2 days after Putin's fifth inauguration as President of Russia, he criticized former Eastern Bloc Soviet satellite states, as well as several other countries formerly occupied by the Soviet Union for the removal of Soviet-era monuments and memorials dedicated to the Russian victory during World War II, saying that they are now dedicating monuments to "traitors and Hitler's accomplices", while erasing the history of noble world liberators. He also claimed that the west was trying to forget major battles during the War, and stated that Russia is trying its best to avoid a global conflict, but also will not let itself be threatened.
Foreign dignitaries in attendance[edit]
Amongst those in attendance were:
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko
President of Cuba Miguel Díaz-Canel
President of Guinea-Bissau Umaro Sissoco Embaló
President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev
President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Japarov
President of Laos Thongloun Sisoulith
President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon
President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedow
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev
See also[edit]
References[edit]
http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/73995
