In his Victory Day speech, the Russian president said his troops were “in a state of combat readiness.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the “arrogant” West of risking global conflict and warned that the nuclear power’s “strategic forces” were ready to fight as he marked the Soviet victory over Germany in World War II.
In a defiant speech on Thursday in Moscow’s Red Square to thousands of soldiers in ceremonial dress, Putin said Western elites had forgotten the Soviet Union’s role in defeating Nazism and were now fomenting conflict around the world.
“We know what the excessiveness of such ambitions leads to. “Russia will do everything to prevent a global conflict,” he said. “But at the same time, we will not allow anyone to threaten us. Our strategic forces are always ready to fight.”
Victory Day has become Russia’s most important holiday as Putin puts the country firmly on combat alert. Citing World War II, the president has repeatedly portrayed the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 as an existential struggle against Nazism.
This year’s address to the nation came as his troops advanced into Ukraine and shortly after he took the oath for an unprecedented fifth term after winning presidential elections without any opposition. At a ceremonial inauguration two days earlier, he promised to deliver a “victory” to the Russians.
The 71-year-old leader has also ratcheted up his nuclear rhetoric. Earlier this week, he ordered the Russian military to conduct nuclear weapons exercises involving the Navy and troops stationed near Ukraine.
Last year, Russia revoked ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT) and withdrew from a key arms reduction agreement with the United States.
Military showcase
On Thursday, columns of tanks and rockets rolled across Red Square, with squadrons of fighter planes thundering overhead.
Security was tight in the capital and parades were canceled in several areas, including the western Kursk and Pskov regions, for security reasons.
The parade in Moscow was scaled back compared to previous years due to mobilization at the front.
Putin sees the ongoing war as part of a battle with the West, which he says humiliated Russia after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 by encroaching on what he sees as Moscow’s sphere of influence.
Ukraine and its Western allies are committed to defeating Russia, which currently controls about 18 percent of Ukraine, including Crimea, and parts of four regions in eastern Ukraine.
The event was attended by the heads of state and government of Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Cuba, Laos and Guinea-Bissau.
According to Russian officials, the Ukraine war is entering its most dangerous phase yet. Putin has repeatedly warned of the danger of a much broader war between the world’s largest nuclear powers.