Putin arrives in Red Square as Russia’s annual Victory Parade gets underway

Vladimir Putin has addressed his country’s Victory Day parade on Moscow’s Red Square, claiming that Russia wants peace while accusing the ‘western elite’ of waging a real war against his forces in Ukraine.

His speech, watched by hundreds of uniformed soldiers, military officials and leaders of former Soviet nations, came just hours after another barrage of cruise missiles hit several sites across the border to the west.

‘Today civilisation is once again at a decisive turning point. A real war has been unleashed against our Motherland,’ he said in a reference to his ongoing invasion that the Kremlin portrays as being a proxy conflict with the West.

He welcomed soldiers fighting in Ukraine who were present at the parade, and framed his on-going illegal invasion as being akin to the Soviet fight against Nazi Germany in the Second World War, which came to an end 78 years ago – a false narrative that has nevertheless resonated at home.

‘To Russia! To our brave armed forces! To Victory!’ Putin concluded the speech.

In a major coup for the Kremlin, at least six post-Soviet leaders including the prime minister of Armenia and the president of Kazakhstan travelled to attend the military parade that fetes the Soviet victory in 1945.

Pictures from Moscow showed Putin arriving and shaking hands with military officials, before delivering his speech. Hundreds of uniformed soldiers then began their parade, marching through Moscow’s famous square.

Dozens of military vehicles – including armoured personnel carriers, trucks and intercontinental ballistic missile launchers – also rolled through the city. Observers noted, however, that few Russian tanks were on displaying. The only model that appeared to be used in the parade was the T-34, which was used in the Second World War.

State television showed the Russian despot positioned next to World War II veterans as he delivered his 10-minute speech, in which he repeated familiar messages he has delivered many times in the nearly 15 months of Russia’s war in Ukraine. 

‘We have repulsed international terrorism, we will protect the inhabitants of Donbas, we will ensure our security,’ he said.

To troops fighting in Ukraine, some of whom were at the Parade, he said: ‘There is nothing more important now than your combat effort. The security of the country rests on you today, the future of our statehood and our people depend on you.’ 

In his speech, Putin insisted that the West’s ‘untamed ambitions, arrogance and impunity’ are to blame for the conflict. He claimed ‘Western globalist elites’ were sowing Russophobia and aggressive nationalism, while the Ukrainian people had become ‘hostages to a state coup’ and to the ambitions of the West.

Despite ordering his troops across the border in February last year and repeatedly attacking civilian centres in Ukraine, Putin claimed he wanted peace.

‘We want to see our future peaceful and stable. We believe that any ideology of supremacy is not acceptable to us. However, the western elite and globalists are insisting on their exceptional character,’ he said.

‘They [Western countries] are destroying traditional family values that make a person a person, and they are dictating their will to others. Their rule to others. In essence, this is a system of robbing others, and a system of violence,’ he added.

In a re-writing of history – incorrectly framing the Soviet Union as the nation fully responsible for the defeat of Nazi Germany – he said of the West: ‘They have forgotten who destroyed that evil, who defended their motherlands, who liberated the people of Europe. We see that in a number of countries.’

He did not address the challenges facing Russia as its forces prepare for an expected major counter-offensive by Ukraine, or outline any path to victory. 

Putin claims his so-called ‘special military operation’ is an effort to bring about the ‘denazification’ of a belligerent imperial power backed by the west, a narrative that has been refuted by Kyiv and its allies – who say the invasion is an imperialistic land grab by Russia with the goal of eradicating a sovereign nation.

In the run-up to the sabre-rattling festivities, Russia has witnessed numerous incidents, including explosions derailing trains, fires, a drone attack on the Kremlin and a bombing attack that wounded a fiercely pro-Kremlin writer, Zakhar Prilepin.

More than two dozen cities and towns – near the Ukraine border, but also in more distant Russian regions – have cancelled plans to stage their own military parades over security concerns.

The parade also comes after 14 months of fighting in Ukraine, Russia has little to show for its military campaign.

Putin’s troops have failed to take control of the eastern town of Bakhmut, his military leadership is riven by conflict and Kyiv is again preparing to go on the offensive.

The Kremlin has, however, said that the Red Square parade – which is essential to Putin’s legitimacy – will take place.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that ‘all necessary measures’ were being taken to ensure the safety of the leaders.

Political analyst Arkady Dubnov said that ‘for the first time in many years’ Putin will be surrounded at a Victory Day parade by a number of post-Soviet leaders.

‘Despite the serious weakening of its global positions after February 24, 2022, Russia remains to a certain extent the metropolis of a former empire whose actions have to be taken into account,’ Dubnov said.

The leaders of Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Armenia and Putin’s closest ally – Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko – are all in attendance.

Tuesday also saw Russia unleash a barrage of cruise missiles on Ukraine overnight into Tuesday, hours before the start of the parade.

The Kremlin’s forces launched 25 missiles overnight in a wave of attacks across Ukraine, the Ukrainian air force said, adding that air defence had successfully destroyed 23 of them.

In a Telegram post, the air force said eight Kalibr cruise missiles were launched from carriers in the Black Sea toward the east and 17 from strategic aircraft.

Since coming to power in 2000, Putin has promoted a patriotic cult around the 1945 Soviet victory over the Nazis, used to stoke patriotism and boost his standing as the heir of Soviet power.

The Kremlin has also used the memory of the Soviet war effort to justify its offensive in Ukraine, claiming it is fighting ‘fascists’ supported by the West.

Authorities have scrapped plans to hold so-called ‘Immortal Regiment’ marches that see people carry photos of veterans or family members who died in World War II.

While officials said the events would not take place due to security concerns, Kremlin critics say many Russians could have brought photos of those who died fighting in Ukraine, highlighting the scale of Moscow’s losses.

Ahead of the parade, Yevgeny Prigozhin, chief of the mercenary group Wagner, issued a series of blistering, profanity-laced videos, blaming Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of General Staff Valery Gerasimov for withholding ammunition amid talk of infighting and rivalries.

His statement appeared to row back from comments hours earlier that initial data showed they had begun to get it. 

But Yevgeny Prigozhin, whose forces have spent months trying to capture the eastern Ukraine city of Bakhmut, added that he did not want to ‘spoil’ Russia’s big Victory Day parade set for 0700 GMT, and would reveal more details afterwards.

‘The people who were supposed to fulfil the (shipment) orders have so far, over the past day, not fulfilled them,’ Prigozhin said in a video post on the messaging app Telegram.

The Institute for the Study of War has pointed to ‘chain of command problems’ for the Russian army in Ukraine that cast doubt on Moscow’s ability to ‘coordinate a coherent theatre-wide defensive campaign’.

Russia and other ex-soviet states celebrate Victory Day on May 9, while most other European countries mark the date on May 8, due to the time difference when Nazi Germany signed to surrender in 1945.

Western nations that celebrate Victory in Europe Day (VE Day) do so to mark the end of all combat actions in the Second World War, which was officially specified as 23:01 Central European Time, which was already May 9 in Eastern Europe.

By contrast, Ukraine commemorated the end of World War II together with Europe on Monday, with President Volodymyr Zelensky vowing that Russian forces would be defeated just as Nazi Germany was beaten in 1945.

The Ukrainian leader said the Kremlin was responsible for ‘aggression and annexation, occupation and deportation’, as well as ‘mass murder and torture’. 

Zelensky said he had submitted a bill to parliament to formally commemorate World War II in Ukraine on May 8. For years the anniversary was marked on May 9, as it was in Russia and other ex-Soviet countries.

Ukraine will also mark a separate Europe Day on May 9, which promotes peace and unity on the continent, he said.

European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday to mark the celebration of peace and unity, in a symbolic retort to Moscow’s Victory Day parade.

The president of the European Commission travelled on an overnight train from Poland to see President Volodymyr Zelensky and work on Ukraine’s quest for eventual EU membership, a reporter on the train said.