Victory Day parade held on Moscow's Red Square

A.V.

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A military parade involving over 10,000 personnel, 150 tracked and wheeled military vehicles, as well as 127 aircraft and helicopters was launched on Moscow's Red Square at 10:00 a.m. Moscow time (06:00 GMT) on Sunday, when Russia celebrates Victory Day.
Victory Day marks the final surrender by Nazi Germany to the U.S.S.R. in WWII, often referred to as the Great Patriotic War in Russia and other states in the former Soviet Union.
Moscow's Military District Commander, Col. Gen. Valery Gerasimov, is running the parade.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev addressed the participants and guests at the beginning of the parade.
"This war made us a strong nation...We have won not simply a military victory but also a moral victory," Medvedev said.
The parade, which is accompanied by over 50 Russian and foreign military orchestras with 1,200 musicians, is divided into three parts - a march pass, involving military personnel, followed by sophisticated hardware and a fly over by combat aircraft.
U.S., British, Polish and French troops will march alongside the Russian military units in the parade on Moscow's Red Square for the first time in history.
The Russian president called for united international efforts to face new challenges and global threats and to prevent tragedies similar to World War II, which took lives of an estimated 60 mln people around the world.
"The joint march [on Red Square] symbolizes our readiness to defend peace, to prevent the revision of the results of the war, to prevent new tragedies," Medvedev said.
RIA Novosti broadcasts the parade live on its website.
Victory Day parades involving military hardware are held this year in 36 Russian cities.
Over 102,000 military servicemen and about 200,000 World War II veterans across Russia are expected to take part in festivities dedicated to the 65th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany.
The first Victory Parade was held on Red Square on June 24, 1945 on the order of the then-Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Joseph Stalin.
According to latest studies, the total causalities of the Soviet Union, both soldiers and civilians, were 26.6 million people, of those an estimated 8,668,400 soldiers died.

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20100509/158939665.html
 

nandu

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Victory Day parade on Red Square

[video]http://en.rian.ru/video/20100509/158941685.html[/video]
 

nandu

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Combat jets paint Russian flag in skies over Red Square



Russian Su-25 Frogfoot military jets 'painted' a tricolor Russian national flag flying over Red Square during a military parade to mark the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe.

The parade, which started at 10.00 Moscow time [06.00 GMT] and continued for about an hour and a half, was the biggest military parade in Russia since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

A total of 127 aircraft divided in 20 groups took part in a ceremonial flyover.

Su-25 ground support aircraft and MiG-29 fighters flew in a setup formation resembling number 65 in reference to the anniversary.

Other aircraft displayed during the parade included Il-76 and An-124 military transport planes, accompanied by multirole Su-27 fighters, Il-78 aerial tankers, an A-50 AWACS plane, Tu-95MS Bear and supersonic Tu-160 Blackjack strategic bombers.

Russia's Yak-130 combat trainers, Su-34 multirole strike aircraft and Mi-26 heavy transport helicopters flew over the Kremlin for the first time.

A large helicopter group included Mi-24, Mi-28 and Ka-50 attack helicopters, and Mi-8 transport helicopters.

Victory Day on May 9 marks the final surrender by Nazi Germany to the U.S.S.R. in WWII, which is often referred to as the Great Patriotic War in Russia and other states from the former Soviet Union.

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20100509/158941012.html
 

RAM

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Foreign troops join Russians in Victory Day parade

MOSCOW: President Dmitry Medvedev struck a conciliatory note at Russia's Victory Day military parade on Sunday, urging world powers to unite for peace and defending his decision to invite NATO troops to march on Red Square.

For the first time since Stalin began commemorating the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany, serving US, British Polish and French troops joined over 11,000 Russian soldiers to parade past the Kremlin's red walls in bright sunshine.

The opposition Communists and some Soviet war veterans condemned the move but Medvedev said in a speech that the lesson from World War Two was "to urge us to unite in solidarity" to counter present-day threats and ensure global security.

"Today, at the military parade, soldiers of Russia, of countries of the (former Soviet Union), and of the Allied powers will march together, in one column which is evidence of our common readiness to defend peace", he said.

Welsh Guards from the British military marched in their trademark black bearskin hats ahead of 70 troops from the US 170th Infantry Brigade in a section reserved for the Soviet Union's war allies.

Underlining the message of reconciliation, a 1,200-strong military band closed the parade with a moving rendition of Beethoven's Ode to Joy as German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Chinese President Hu Jintao and other world leaders looked on.

Russia's Communists, still the country's biggest opposition party, held a demonstration after the parade, chanting "Glory to the great Stalin", to protest against NATO forces for marching over the square, home to the embalmed body of Lenin.

Most of the Soviet war veterans attending the parade seemed unconcerned by the presence of NATO soldiers, though they did not applaud when they marched past.

"Why not? Let them see how we celebrate a solemn parade," said ex-World War Two soldier Grigory Petrovich Zabuski.

"I'm absolutely not against it. I met English troops myself on the Elbe on May 4, 1945."

But not everyone was happy. "We veterans were against this from the beginning," said one former naval officer, who declined to give his name.

"The Americans have their interests everywhere, even in our country. Remember when (then US Secretary of State) Madeleine Albright said it was not fair that all of Siberia belonged to Russia ?"

US President Barack Obama, unable to come to Moscow because of a scheduling clash, praised the historic invitation to NATO troops, saying Medvedev had shown "remarkable leadership in honouring the sacrifices of those who came before us".

Biggest ever

A poll by the independent Levada Centre last month showed that 55 percent of Russians were wholly or partly positive about NATO troops at the parade, with only 28 percent against.

The result may reflect better ties between Moscow and Washington since Obama's election and his "reset" of relations.

Victory Day is one of Russia's most important public holidays and defence minister Anatoly Serdyukov said this year's commemorations would be among the biggest, with over 102,000 troops marching in cities across this vast country.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi cancelled their attendance at the last minute to deal with the crisis surrounding the euro currency.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin revived two years ago a Soviet-era tradition of parading tanks, missiles and military vehicles across the square and flying aircraft overhead.

This year's parade included 127 helicopters, fighters, bombers, reconnaissance aircraft and refuelling planes which screamed over Red Square at low altitudes in close formation.

Behind the ceremony and the celebrations, serious business was transacted. Putin, who is now prime minister, hosted a meeting and dinner at his country retreat for China's Hu. Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said afterwards only that discussions were substantive.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...n-Victory-Day-parade-/articleshow/5909662.cms
 

Armand2REP

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They have money to keep a hundred WWII relics running but they can't run the military... amasing.
 

bhramos

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Anger as NATO troops join Red Square parade


NATO troops marched across Red Square Sunday as Russia marked the 65th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany, a gesture of friendship to the West which won praise from U.S. President Barack Obama but enraged Communists.
Related photos / videos



U.S. military personnel march along Red Square during a military parade in Moscow Enlarge photo


Foreign leaders including President Hu Jintao of China and German Chancellor Angela Merkel watched as over 11,000 troops from World War Two victors Russia, the United States, Britain and France paraded to the sound of a huge military band.

A detachment of Welsh Guards from Britain in their trademark red tunics and black bearskin hats marched past Lenin's mausoleum carrying assault rifles. Armed U.S. troops from the 170th Infantry Brigade based in Germany followed shortly after.

"Our unified formation is evidence of our common willingness to defend the peace," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told the troops. "Only together can we confront today's threats, only on the basis of good neighbourliness can we solve the problems of global security."

Russia's Communists, still the country's biggest opposition party, pledged to hold a protest march in central Moscow after the parade. They will chant slogans against NATO forces for marching over a hallowed square which is also home to the embalmed body of their revolutionary hero, Vladimir Lenin.
"Foreign troops have never appeared on Red Square. It's a violation of tradition," said Sergei Obukhov, a member of the party's Central Committee. "The presence of foreign troops with weapons in their hands is...an unnecessary reminder that we lost the Cold War."

Obama, unable to come to Moscow because of a scheduling clash, praised the invitation to NATO troops.
"President Medvedev has shown remarkable leadership in honouring the sacrifices of those who came before us, and in speaking so candidly about the Soviet Union's suppression of elementary rights and freedoms," he said in a statement.

RUSSIANS BACK INVITATION

Most Russians seem to back Medvedev's invitation to the NATO forces.

A poll by the independent Levada Centre last month showed that 55 percent viewed the presence of NATO troops at the parade as wholly or partly positive, with only 28 percent opposing it.

The result may reflect markedly better relations between Moscow and Washington since Obama's election and his "reset" of relations. This has already brought a new treaty cutting nuclear weapons and a deal on helping supply NATO forces in Afghanistan.

Victory Day is one of Russia's most important public holidays and Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov said that this year's commemorations would be among the biggest ever, with over 102,000 troops marching in cities across this vast country.

Continuing a tradition begun by Stalin, Soviet and then Russian troops have marched in Red Square every year on May 9 to mark the capitulation of Nazi forces in Berlin.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin revived two years ago a Soviet-era tradition of parading tanks, missiles and military vehicles across the square and flying helicopters, fighters and bombers low overhead.


Uniformed war veterans, their chests weighed down with rows of clanking medals, packed the stands in front of the Kremlin walls to watch the parade in bright, warm sunshine.

The walls of the giant luxury GUM shopping centre on Red Square were emblazoned with huge replicas of Soviet war medals. But in a concession to modernity, the Lenin mausoleum, from whose roof Soviet leaders used to watch the parade, was hidden from view by a large hoarding displaying the colours of the Russian flag.

Police locked down much of the centre of Moscow, blocking roads and checking identification papers amid heightened fears of attacks by Islamist insurgents after a March bombing on the Moscow metro killed 40.
Two people were killed by bombs Sunday in the southern Russian region of Dagestan.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi cancelled their attendance at the last minute, citing the need to deal with the crisis surrounding the euro currency.

(Writing by Michael Stott and Conor Humphries, Additional reporting by Gleb Bryanski and Lidia Kelly; Editing by Diana Abdallah)

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/22/20100509/img/pts-u-s-military-personnel-5cd66261c3ed.html
 

Armand2REP

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Its a matter of pride and Tribute to the soldiers who lost their life and veterans.
Whats more important, holding on to pride of glory days long past or making sure your future is secure? We don't see any parades for the veterans of the Chechen wars, they are the ones who suffered for this regime's poor policies.
 

pack leader

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happy victory day may we never know such a war ever again
may god bless on the souls off thous that died for freedom and life

slava Russia
 

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