On May 9, Russia celebrates ‘Victory Day’: everything we know now | War Ukraine and Russia

Read everything about the war in Ukraine in this file.

On Monday, Russia will celebrate the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. “Victory Day is a gigantic parade every year with a lot of show, especially military show”, explains our war journalist Robin Ramaekers. “It’s a bit of bragging, showing the rest of the world how strong Russia is militarily. But this year it goes one dimension further. This year it is really a matter of showing the world that it is not allowed to mess with Russia.”

President Putin’s speech is particularly eagerly anticipated. The Russian president lashed out at the West during Victory Day in previous years. British and US officials previously stated that Putin would declare war on Ukraine on Monday, something the Kremlin has denied. The announcement of a general mobilization is also denied. “There’s no chance of that. It’s nonsense,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated that May 9 is not an end date for the “special military operation” in Ukraine. “Our soldiers will not artificially adjust their actions to any date,” it said. “The pace of the operation in Ukraine depends primarily on the need to mitigate any risks to the civilian population and Russian soldiers.”

The announcement of a major victory in Ukraine, which Putin had hoped for according to many experts, will not come either. “Putin will therefore look for a way to be able to unpack on this big holiday,” Ramaekers expects. The main focus is Mariupol, where the battle for the Azov stable factory has erupted in full force in recent days. The capture of the last Ukrainian stronghold would give Russia complete control over the strategic port area of ​​Mariupol, south of the Donbas region.

Kherson, a large city in the south of Ukraine, could also be used by Russia as a trophy, the war journalist thinks. “Russia captured that important city at the beginning of the war, and it is the only city that is currently in the hands of the Russians. So it is possible that Putin will declare Kherson oblast an independent oblast.”

The self-proclaimed pro-Russian republics of Donetsk and Luhansk could be declared independent republics, or could be annexed by Putin into Russia. “They are all options that are possible, but we will have to wait until Monday to know exactly what the Russian president will announce,” Ramaekers said.

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoygu has already announced that military parades are planned in 28 cities. Some 65,000 people, 2,400 pieces of military equipment and more than 400 aircraft are involved. “For the first time, modern Tornado-G type Tornado-G rocket launchers with a 122 millimeter caliber and equipped with automatic control and fire control systems will roll in the motorized column across Red Square,” Shoygu said.

The country’s largest parade, in Moscow, is expected to include 11,000 soldiers and 131 military vehicles. 77 helicopters and planes are also taking part. According to the independent Russian anti-corruption website Gulagu.net, the Kremlin plans to stage more than 500 Ukrainian POWs at the parade, “in front of a shocked audience and the eye of the camera, to demonstrate the strength and superiority of the Russian military.” and demoralize the Ukrainians”.

A military parade would also be organized in Mariupol, Ukrainian intelligence service GOER reported. Mariupol will become a center of Russian festivities. The city’s main avenues are being cleared, debris and bodies of the dead are being removed, as well as unexploded ordnance,” the GOER said in a statement to Telegram.