9 May every year is the Russians’ big celebration of the victory against Nazi Germany in the Second World War. The parade will be held this year as well, and it is expected that Vladimir Putin will give a speech as usual.
One of the most magnificent features of the parade is what roughly translates to “The Immortal Brigade”. This year, however, there will be nothing of the feature, several Russian newspapers report.
– I expect the reason to be quite clear. A drone attack on such an event would have been very stupid. At the same time, it would also be stupid for Ukraine, because it would look like they are shooting at civilians, says chief researcher at the Norwegian Defense Research Institute, Tor Bukkvoll, to Nettavisen.
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Threat to Moscow
On Wednesday afternoon Norwegian time, the Russian authorities claimed that two Ukrainian drones had been stopped just before they reached the Kremlin in Moscow. There have been several who claim that the attack is fake. Nevertheless, Ukrainian drone strikes against Russia have been confirmed on previous occasions.
– The biggest threat is probably considered to be Ukrainian actions, but also from groups inside Russia. There are those who are willing to use violence to demonstrate against the war inside Russia, says Bukkvoll.
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Under the “Brigade of the Immortals”, relatives of Russians who perished in the Second World War often carry pictures of their deceased ancestors or relatives. In social media, there is speculation as to whether the Russian authorities fear that the commemoration would have been hijacked by the families of soldiers who have been killed in Ukraine.
– It is a possibility, but then you can imagine that the authorities will deploy enough police to prevent it. They have had good control over demonstrations against the war so far, says the chief researcher.
Heroes of World War II
The concept started in 2012 in Siberia as a non-public event, but later grew to become an event under state initiative.
– The older you are, the more important it is, because a lot of people lost someone during the Second World War. For the younger ones, it is probably somewhat less important. But the Russian regime has come up with this Nazi rhetoric as a kind of excuse for going to war, says Bukkvoll and adds:
– In that sense, perhaps such parades are more important than in a long time. After all, they want to form an image of this war, which is similar to the one 80 years ago.
– Isn’t it a little surprising that they cancel?
– No, it is a state of emergency even if one has not been proclaimed. The country is at war and in war you cannot do exactly the same as in peacetime. For Putin, it is very important that people continue to have the impression that he is in control, he replies.
Ukraine’s motivation
Bukkvoll points out that it does not always appear that the Kyiv regime does not have full control. He highlights the episode from April when the Russian military blogger Vladlen Tatarskij was killed in the explosion at a cafe in St. Petersburg.
– Do you think Ukraine could think of attacking these parades?
– No, I do not think so. They have nothing to gain from it and the Second World War probably still means quite a lot to many Ukrainians too, says Bukkvoll.
Ukraine has always denied having attempted to attack the Kremlin with drones.
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2023-05-08 01:58:26
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