The Telegraph: 'Victory Parade' Was A Crushing Demonstration Of Russia's Exhaustion

The Russian authorities are unsure of their future.

The May 9 parade in Moscow was less a celebration of victory for Russia than an admission of strategic exhaustion. The regime, which used to demonstrate military might before the world, was unable to muster either missiles or meaningful military hardware for its most important national spectacle. Military expert Hamish de Breton-Gordon writes about this in an article for The Telegraph.

"A few obsolete aircraft flying in loose formation could not hide the fact that Russian military resources are being expended on the battlefield at an incredible rate," the expert notes.

He points out that World War II-era tanks have been spotted at regional parades. There is speculation that some of them are now returning to service because thousands of modern Russian armored vehicles have already been destroyed in Ukraine. If true, this is a crushing indication of the Kremlin's military exhaustion, he emphasizes.

The lack of personnel was no less telling. Russian troops at the parade were reinforced by soldiers from North Korea, and that is quite unusual for a state that once claimed self-sufficiency as a cornerstone of its military prestige. It underscores how dependent Russia has become on its authoritarian allies.

Diplomatically, the situation did not look any better either. There was only a small group of authoritarian leaders alongside Putin, with the notable absence this year of China's leader Si Jinping.

"This absence spoke of a more cautious Beijing, increasingly aware that association with a failing Russian campaign carries growing geopolitical costs."

Putin attempted to appeal to the mythology of the "Great Patriotic War," drawing parallels between Soviet triumphs such as the battle of Kursk and the current struggles in the region. However, the contrast between these situations is striking, the expert notes.

"In 1943, the Soviet Union deployed thousands of tanks in one of the decisive tank battles in history. Today, Russia struggles to demonstrate even a symbolic presence of armored vehicles on Red Square itself. This comparison serves not so much to inspire patriotism as to underscore the dramatic weakening of Russia's conventional armed forces," the article notes.

Victory Day Backlash

Victory Day is sacred in Russia, and for decades has symbolized national resilience, pride and memory. This year, however, the spectacle rather achieved the opposite effect. Instead of a show of strength, it exposed weakness.

"The absence of even one modern tank in Red Square may end up being one of the defining images of this war...Despite the advent of drones, tanks remain essential when effectively integrated with modern tactics and air defenses. The fact that Russia has been unable to allocate even symbolic armored vehicles for its most important national ceremony says much about the tensions its army now faces," the article noted.

At the same time, for Ukraine and its allies, this reality offers some hope. Wars are not won by parades, but parades can reveal the truth behind the propaganda, the expert emphasizes.

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