This year's military parade in Moscow shows how much the war in Ukraine has changed Russia

Written by: Armin Sijamić

Victory Day is one of the most important holidays in modern Russia. It is a time to pay tribute and gratitude to all those who participated in the war against the German Nazis and their allies. Yesterday's military parade in Moscow marking the 78th anniversary of victory in World War II was different from previous ones. Everything that happened regarding that parade shows how much Russia has changed after fifteen months of war in Ukraine.

Russia proudly remembers the victory in World War II. As time passes, the authorities in Moscow attach increasing symbolic importance to that crucial moment in European history, which is understandable, as the then USSR suffered the highest number of casualties in the war against the Nazis. This time, the celebration also has current political reasons, since Russia has little left that connects it with the rest of the European continent. In a series of bad moves by the Kremlin, clinging to historical dates remains one of the tools through which the authorities want to show Russia's importance for the history of Europe.

In his speech during the military parade yesterday, Vladimir Putin tried to contextualize his decision to destroy Ukraine within World War II, which is an insult to the millions of Ukrainian victims in that war. The "special military operation," as Russia calls the invasion of Ukraine, has been woven into the narrative of World War II, and this is a tragedy for Moscow, which for years has called for stopping the "revision" of history because some try to diminish the USSR's contribution to defeating Hitler, even though about half of the fallen soldiers of the Allied forces come from this country.

Using the past for current political purposes is not a Russian invention, and we witness this in the Balkans and elsewhere. However, in shaping a new way of celebrating this date, Putin went a step further by including religious leaders in paying tribute to soldiers with the red star. The Russian Orthodox Church, which does not remember the USSR fondly, is indispensable in the celebrations.

Military parade in the shadow of war

The history of celebrating May 9 in Russia says a lot about the country itself. Moscow has not always marked this day in the same way. During the USSR, the military parade was not annual but tied to anniversary years, such as 1965, 1985, or 1990. At the beginning of Boris Yeltsin's rule, there were no parades, and later they were modest, until Putin gave them special significance when he took power. Particularly impressive military parades were held in 2005 and 2015, and they became, in a way, a hallmark of Russian military power. Every May 9, the world would follow the parade, as it was an opportunity for Russia to showcase its weapons, but also to send a message to the rest of the mostly disarmed European continent about its growing power.

In recent years, Russia has shown the world its missiles, planes, helicopters, and tanks, including the T-14 Armata tank, which they claimed was the best in the world. Yesterday, a few missile systems and armored vehicles were displayed, planes did not fly over Red Square, and only one tank as old as the day being celebrated appeared in the review. The T-34 was a reminder of the Russian armored divisions that were the pride of the army for decades, and which Moscow claimed could overrun Europe in about ten days.

The reduced scale of the parade was justified as a precaution, because just a few days earlier, a drone hit the Kremlin. Moscow claims that Kyiv, with Washington's support, is behind the attack and that Putin was the target. Additionally, several assassinations and diversions were carried out across the country. In other parts of Russia, the way of celebrating was also changed.

The presence of only one tank in the parade did not escape the attention of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, which wrote on Twitter that more Russian weapons can be seen among the trophies captured by the Ukrainian army than at the parade in Moscow. This message made some laugh, but the matter is serious. In a kind of preparation for the May 9 parade, Russian forces carried out an attack with missiles and drones on targets across Ukraine. Kyiv reported civilian casualties and infrastructure damage.

The army in Bakhmut and guests at the parade

In the days leading up to the holiday, the star of Russian media was once again Yevgeny Prigozhin, who threatened the authorities in Moscow that he would withdraw his Wagner mercenary group from the city of Bakhmut because there is not enough ammunition to continue the battle for this Ukrainian city. Whether this is a deliberate operation to disorient the Ukrainians – if that is even possible after fifteen months of war, or whether it is a real problem in the Russian command system, is difficult to conclude.

However, what is obvious is that the leader of the mercenary group, a former convict and caterer, is publicly "restoring order" in the Russian army, which not so long ago thought it could subdue Europe in about ten days. His message that he will withdraw soldiers from Bakhmut if the military leadership does not do what he asks says a lot about the state of Russia. The fact that Prigozhin is close to Putin makes the case even more devastating.

The response sent to him via social media by Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov is even more bizarre. Kadyrov said he is ready to bring his forces to replace Prigozhin's. Would the Red Army have reached Berlin on May 9, 1945, if it had had such military leaders?

Russia against the West

The guest list also indicates that things are not going according to plan. The parade, along with Putin, was attended by the leaders of Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan. In earlier parades, the guest list was sometimes longer, indicating that Putin, who is charged with war crimes by the court in The Hague, is in increasing diplomatic isolation. The reason is the war against Ukraine, and the West threatens sanctions against all those who do not distance themselves from Russia. Except for Belarus, none of the mentioned countries supported the war in Ukraine.

Putin used his speech to lash out at the West and the "globalist elite" that made the Ukrainian people "hostages." He accused the West of wanting to destroy Russia. He said that the "future" of Russia depends on success in Ukraine, a message that Moscow will not abandon its goals and an announcement of the continuation of the war. Thus, he described the tragedy of the war in just a few sentences. From his presentation, it can be concluded that Moscow is at war with the West, while Ukraine and Russia are suffering.

Ukraine has made a new break from Russia. Victory Day over fascism in Kyiv will, according to a proposal by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, be celebrated on May 8. He said that Russia wanted to capture Bakhmut by May 9, "which no longer exists," and that the goal was not achieved.

Yesterday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen arrived in Kyiv. "Ukraine is on the front line defending everything we Europeans value: our freedom, our democracy, our freedom of thought and speech," von der Leyen said.

"Ukraine is bravely fighting for the ideals of Europe that we celebrate today. In Russia, Putin and his regime have destroyed these values, and now they are trying to destroy them here in Ukraine, because they are afraid of the success you represent and the example you set, and they are afraid of your path to the European Union," she added.

The statements of Putin, Zelenskyy, and von der Leyen indicate that the gap between the two sides is widening, that the war continues, and that it is only a matter of time before someone launches a new offensive. While waiting for that to happen, the conflict over the past continues, and almost no one mentions the common future of the two "brotherly" peoples.