President Vladimir Putin on Sunday vowed that Russia will “firmly” defend nationwide pursuits and denounced the return of “Russophobia”, because the nation marked the 76th anniversary of victory in World War II.
His speech to hundreds of troopers and veterans on Red Square got here as tensions between Moscow and the West in current weeks have recalled the Cold War over the battle in Ukraine and a litany of spy scandals in Europe.
“The Soviet people kept their sacred oath, defended the homeland and freed the countries of Europe from the black plague,” Putin instructed the gang.
“Russia consistently defends international law. At the same time, we will firmly defend our national interests to ensure the safety of our people,” Putin stated.
The Russian chief additionally condemned what he referred to as a creeping return of ideologies of the time, when “slogans of racial and national superiority, of anti-semitism and Russophobia, became ever more cynical”.
His speech got here firstly of an annual parade that army {hardware} roll via the streets of Moscow.
More than 12,000 army personnel took half in Sunday’s parade, in addition to some 190 items of army gear and 76 fighter jets and helicopters.
Victory Day parades, which solely turned an annual occasion after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and have taken on growing significance in projecting Russia’s renewed army would possibly throughout Putin’s 20 years in energy, additionally befell Sunday in dozens of cities throughout the nation.
‘Victory of all the Russian individuals’
A survey this week by state-run pollster VTsIOM confirmed that 69 p.c of Russians view Victory Day as a very powerful vacation on the calendar.
A 3rd of respondents stated they’d participate within the celebrations, whereas a fifth stated they’d watch on tv.
“For me and my family, this holiday marks the victory of the entire Russian people,” Yulia Gulevskikh, a 31-year-old accountant, instructed AFP within the Far East metropolis of Vladivostok.
“We are proud, remember and honour all our relatives and friends. And all the brave soldiers,” she added, noting she was glad the parade befell regardless of pandemic measures.
This yr’s Victory Day was the second in the course of the coronavirus pandemic.
Russia has lifted practically all of its measures to restrict the unfold of the virus, although it has stored a ban in place on mass gatherings in most areas.
As of Sunday, whole infections stood at practically 4.9 million and fatalities at over 113,000, in line with a tally by well being officers.
But authorities have been criticised for downplaying the severity Russia’s outbreak by counting solely fatalities the place the coronavirus was discovered to be the first explanation for dying after an post-mortem.
Figures launched by Russia’s statistics company final month confirmed that the nation had truly recorded some 250,000 virus-related deaths by the tip of March.
Tensions with the West
Sunday’s commemorations got here as Russia in current weeks has seen its diplomats expelled from a clutch of European nations over espionage scandals, whereas the United States and the European Union have levied new sanctions on Moscow over the therapy of jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and allegations of hacking and cyberattacks.
Tensions have additionally soared over the battle in jap Ukraine, which erupted after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and the place Moscow is extensively seen as backing pro-Russia separatists.
Clashes between the federal government and separatists have been intensifying since January in a battle which has claimed greater than 13,000 lives.
Russia final month amassed 100,000 troops close to Ukraine’s borders and in Crimea, its largest buildup since 2014, although it rapidly introduced a drawdown in what many noticed as a take a look at for brand new US President Joe Biden.
Earlier this week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken flew to Kiev in a present of assist for Ukraine towards Russia, and earlier than an anticipated summit between Putin and Biden subsequent month.
On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky travelled with European diplomats to the pro-Russian breakaway jap area of Lugansk to commemorate the tip of WWII.
(This story has not been edited by LiveNews360 employees and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
