![]() Dramatic options include escalation through a formal declaration of war or general mobilisation – or de-escalating by proclaiming victory.Īlternatively, Putin could offer up a “sandwich”, as one analyst put it, that praises the Russian army’s “victory” while preparing the population for a grinding and painful conflict as status quo. And the coming weeks are going to be the telltale of where this is going.”įacing setbacks, officials have suggested that Vladimir Putin may use the May 9 holiday to repackage the war in Ukraine. And given how effective the Ukrainians have been with our support, I just don’t think they’re going to be able to achieve their objectives within the coming weeks. “Militaries just don’t recover that quickly from such a devastating loss. TV actor Volodymyr Zelenskiy roundly defeated Poroshenko in Ukraine’s April 21 presidential runoff.Ī previous version of this story corrected the day to Thursday, not Friday.“With the current force that they have, the push that they’re attempting now is all that they have left,” said Jeffrey Edmonds, former director for Russia on the US national security council and senior analyst at the CNA thinktank. Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and backs separatist rebels who have been fighting Ukrainian forces in the country’s east for the past five years, a conflict that has left over 13,000 dead. “For five years, the descendants of the glorious victors over Nazism have defended with arms the freedom of the Ukrainian people and their civilization choice from Russian aggression,” Poroshenko said. ![]() In neighboring Ukraine, which also observes the holiday, outgoing President Petro Poroshenko struck out at Russia. The Soviet Union is estimated to have lost 26 million people in World War II, including 8 million soldiers.ĭozens of other Russian cities also held parades for the country’s most significant secular holiday. In the afternoon, an estimated half a million people streamed down one of Moscow’s main thoroughfares, many holding photos of relatives who fought or suffered in the war. “At the same time, Russia is open for cooperation with all who are ready to resist terrorism, neo-Nazism and extremism.” “We have done and will do everything necessary to ensure the high combat capability of our armed forces,” Putin said in his speech. ![]() ![]() Putin said later that he regretted the aircraft could not perform but added “there’s no need to risk the safety of the pilots and the people on the ground.”Īmong the guests were recently resigned Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev and Steven Seagal, the American actor who obtained Russian citizenship in 2016 and later was named a special envoy for humanitarian ties with the United States. It included about 13,000 servicemen and 130 pieces of military equipment, ranging from a T-34 tank - renowned for its effectiveness in World War II - to lumbering Yars intercontinental missile launch units.įor the second time in three years, the parade did not conclude with an aerial display of helicopters and warplanes speeding above the square due to heavy clouds and concerns about storms. The parade marked the 74th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany. MOSCOW (AP) - Russia will keep strengthening its armed forces, President Vladimir Putin promised Thursday, speaking at the annual military Victory Day parade that flooded Red Square in Moscow with celebrants, soldiers and military equipment.
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