Russian soldiers on Red Square
The recent Victory Day parade in Moscow demonstrated the extent to which Russia has resurrected much of its Soviet heritage, and how the Russian government is preparing to pursue a vigorous foreign policy aimed at disrupting American missile defence plans perceived by the Kremlin as a threat to the security of the Russian Federation.
In the biggest military parade held on Red Square since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russian forces put on a show of strength to celebrate the 65th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany.
Eleven thousand troops, adorned with Soviet-era medals and carrying flags bearing the face of Lenin, goose-stepped before politicians and diplomats on a temporary platform erected in front of the Lenin Mausoleum. They were followed by a procession of military hardware including 159 pieces of ground-based equipment and 127 aircraft and helicopters. For the first time since the Soviet era, the hardware bore the Soviet Guards badge, from the Second World War, or the Soviet five-pointed red star. More than 28 million Russians perished in the fight to liberate the country – and eastern Europe – from the Nazi yoke.
In what just a few years ago would have been regarded as unthinkable, American, British and French troops also marched in the parade. But the decision by the Kremlin to invite soldiers from Nato countries to participate in the celebrations should not be seen as a U-turn in Russian policy towards the West.
Russia considers the construction of an American sea-based missile defence shield in eastern Europe – officially aimed at protecting Europe from a ballistic missile attack from Iran – as a threat to its strategic nuclear deterrent.
Having invited Nato troops to Moscow, the Kremlin can say to the world that while it considers the Cold War to be a distant memory, the mindset of policymakers in the United States remains deeply rooted in this period of history.
