A military parade to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 was held in the Russian capital of Moscow on Thursday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th May, 2019) A military parade to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 was held in the Russian capital of Moscow on Thursday.In total, more than 13,000 people and 132 pieces of military equipment were involved in the traditional Victory Day parade. The aerial part of the parade, which was to showcase 74 aircraft, was canceled due to cloudy weather.
The event was attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, high-ranking Russian officials and former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev.
Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev was among those watching the parade from the stands. US actor Steven Seagal, who obtained Russian citizenship in 2016 and is now the Russian Foreign Ministry's special representative in charge of Russian-US humanitarian ties, also attended the parade. Both he and his wife attached St. George ribbons to their clothes in memory of the Soviet victory over the Nazi army.
The parade was commanded by Commander-in-Chief of the Land Forces, Gen. Oleg Salyukov, while Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu reviewed the parade. This year, for the first time, they greeted troops while standing in brand-new Russian Aurus convertibles that drove in front of formations.
A total of 35 parade units including officers, sergeants and soldiers of formations and military units, student officers and cadets of military educational institutions, pupils of Suvorov and Nakhimov schools of the Russian Defense Ministry, members of military patriotic social movement Yunarmiya and other representatives of security forces marched on the parade.
The armored vehicles' column was traditionally led by a legendary WWII-time T-34 tank, which was followed by the modernized Tigr infantry mobility vehicles, fitted with Arbalet and Kornet-D1 combat missile systems, as well as BMP-3 and Kurganets-25 infantry fighting vehicles, T-14 Armata and T-72B3 tanks among many others.
Msta-S self-propelled howitzers, BTR-82A armored personnel carrier, Iskander-M short-range ballistic missile system, Smerch-M multiple rocket launcher, Buk-M2 anti-aircraft missile system, as well as Tor-M2 and Buk-M2 air defense systems, S-400 and Pantsir-M missile systems were also among those showcased in the military hardware column.
During the military parade, Putin delivered his traditional speech to Russian citizens, vowing that Russia would never forget the courage and selflessness of Soviet soldiers of the Great Patriotic War.
"The soldiers of the country did not spare own lives for the sake of its freedom, for the sake of a peaceful future, for the sake of each of us. We will never forget their courage and sacrifice, and the exorbitant price of victory. We bow our heads before the memory of sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, grandfathers, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, fellow soldiers, relatives, friends. We mourn the veterans who are no longer with us," Putin said.
He recalled that the "insolent force" of Nazis "subjugated many nations, and impunity veiled the Nazis' eyes."
"They thought they would also be able to conquer the Soviet Union within several weeks - the thousand-year-old historic Russia. They failed," Putin said, later referencing an inscription on the wall left by the defenders of the Brest fortress: "I am dying but I do not surrender."
He added that "today we do not hide emotions" since the war brought sorrow and untold suffering to each Soviet family.
"We have not forgotten anything, we remember everything and sacredly honor the soldiers of Victory. It is in their honor that we hold military parades, fireworks displays and Immortal Regiment marches," Putin said.
The president stressed that "the victory was forged by the whole nation," and "Everything for the Victory" had become the slogan of the home front.
He added that lessons of World War II remained relevant today as a number of countries consciously distort WWII events and glorify Nazi collaborators, "forgetting about honor and human dignity, shamelessly lying to their children and betraying their ancestors."
"Our sacred duty is to defend true heroes," he stressed.
Meanwhile, Russia is open to cooperation with all those who are ready in practice to counter terrorism, neo-Nazism and extremism, the president reiterated.
"Collective resistance to adherents of murderous ideas is again becoming crucial. We call on all countries to realize our common responsibility for creating an effective and equal security system for all," he said.
Following the military parade, Putin went to the podium from which the veterans watched the parade. He talked with them and personally congratulated them on Victory Day.
Later, he took part in the wreath laying ceremony in front of the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier near the Kremlin wall. Then he commemorated those fallen in the war with a minute of silence. In Alexander Gardens, he shook hands with each veteran present at the ceremony.
Victory Day celebrations will run into the night across the country. At 3 p.m. Moscow time (12:00 GMT), a traditional Immortal Regiment march in the Russian capital will bring together people carrying photographs of their ancestors who fought in the war.
The Great Patriotic War, which constituted part of the Second World War of 1939-1945, began at dawn on June 22, 1941, when Nazi Germany, violating the Soviet-German non-aggression treaty of 1939, attacked the USSR. The number of the Soviet Union's casualties in WWII is estimated to have exceeded 27 million, while the military casualties amounted to over 8.7 million.
