Putin’s May 9 parade reveals failure in Ukraine — Politico
Moscow (Photo: REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov)
The Kremlin’s decision to scale down the annual Red
Square Victory Day parade makes Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s strategic
failure in Ukraine more apparent, Politico wrote
on May 8.
“Across more than two decades in power, President Vladimir Putin has worked to turn Russia’s historic World War II memorial event into a celebration of future military glory and global clout,” Eva Hartog wrote in the article, titled ‘Russia’s Victory Day is Putin’s biggest liability.’
“But this year’s Victory Day jamboree only underscores his failure to deliver.”
The outlet pointed to a stripped-down format for the Victory Day celebrations as “the clearest sign that the Kremlin’s war against Ukraine is taking a toll.”
For the first time since 2007, no tanks or missile launchers will appear on Moscow’s Red Square, Politico noted. Instead of Soviet-style military displays, residents of the capital are set for a different kind of historical reenactment, a throwback to the “pre-digital age,” a reference to restrictions on mobile and internet service in Moscow in recent months.
Parades have been canceled outright in 27 Russian cities. The Kremlin has justified the limits as “security measures” and warned of a “terrorist threat” after a series of successful Ukrainian attacks on Russian energy and military infrastructure more than 1,500 kilometers (about 930 miles) from the front line. Officials also say this year’s shortened format reflects that it is not a milestone anniversary, unlike last year’s 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazism in Europe.
“But rather than convincing Russians that they are fighting
a uniquely evil enemy — one the Kremlin’s propaganda machine denounces as ‘Nazi’
— the limitations expose Putin’s rigid commitment to a conflict that is
increasingly disruptive at home and that, since January, has outlasted the
Soviet role in World War II,” Hartog suggested.
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