Russia\u2019s traditional parade marking the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II will take place next week without tanks, missiles and other military equipment, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement. <\/p>\n
It will be the first time in nearly two decades \u2014 and in Russia\u2019s 4-year-old war in Ukraine<\/a> \u2014 that no military equipment will rumble through Moscow\u2019s Red Square on May 9, the day Russia celebrates its most important secular holiday<\/a>. The Kremlin has used it to showcase its military might and global clout, and it is a source of patriotic pride.<\/p>\n Victory Day parades on Red Square have involved military equipment and various weaponry every year since 2008. Smaller parades are held elsewhere across the country, including in cities like St. Petersburg.<\/p>\n The ministry cited the \u201ccurrent operational situation\u201d as a reason for excluding military equipment, as well as cadets, from this year\u2019s parade on the 81st anniversary of the victory. Ukraine has launched drone attacks deep inside Russia to counter Moscow\u2019s more than 4-year-old invasion.<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \n AP AUDIO: Russia to hold a Victory Day parade without military equipment for the 1st time in nearly 2 decades\n <\/p>\n AP correspondent Charles de Ledesma reports officials say Russia\u2019s traditional parade making the 81st anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany will take place this year without military equipment.<\/p>\n While the ministry did not elaborate, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday blamed Ukraine, accusing it of \u201cterrorist activity,\u201d in an apparent reference to the drone strikes. In recent months, attacks have reached locations deep inside Russia, like the Baltic port of Ust-Luga to the north of Moscow, the Samara region near the border with Kazakhstan, and the Perm region in the Ural mountains.<\/p>\n \u201cAll measures are being taken to minimize the danger,\u201d he told reporters.<\/p>\n The parade will feature \u201cservicemen from higher military educational institutions of all kinds and certain service branches of the Russian Armed Forces\u201d and a traditional military aircraft flyover, the ministry said.<\/p>\n Boosting national pride<\/p>\n World War II<\/a> remains a rare point of consensus in the nation\u2019s divisive history under Communist rule, and the Kremlin has leveraged that sentiment to encourage national pride and underline Russia\u2019s position as a global power.<\/p>\n The Soviet Union lost 27 million people in what it calls the Great Patriotic War in 1941-45, an enormous sacrifice that left a deep scar in the national psyche.<\/p>\n President Vladimir Putin, who has ruled Russia for over 25 years, has turned Victory Day into a key pillar of his tenure and has tried to use it to justify the war in Ukraine.<\/p>\n \u201cTraditionally, the parade of tanks, missile systems and other military hardware across Red Square has been central to these celebrations, providing powerful optics and reinforcing Russia\u2019s image as the heir to Soviet victory in World War II,\u201d said Natia Seskuria, associate fellow with the Royal United Services Institute. <\/p>\n \u201cRemoving this important element weakens the propaganda value of the event, particularly for domestic audiences, as it reduces one of the most visible symbols of Russian power and military prestige,\u201d she told The Associated Press. <\/p>\n Security concerns are the most likely explanation, Seskuria said.<\/p>\n But there also could be practical military considerations, \u201cincluding the need to preserve equipment, avoid highlighting battlefield losses, and reduce the exposure of valuable military assets,\u201d she said,<\/p>\n \u201cThis decision signals a degree of vulnerability rather than strength, because even last year, Russia demonstrated a range of new tanks and drones in front of invited world leaders,\u201d Seskuria added. <\/p>\n An 80th anniversary drew dignitaries<\/p>\n Last year\u2019s parade<\/a> on the 80th anniversary was the largest since Russia sent troops into Ukraine, and drew the most global leaders to Moscow<\/a> in a decade, including high-profile guests like Chinese President Xi Jinping, Brazilian President Luiz In\u00e1cio Lula da Silva and Slovakia\u2019s Prime Minister Robert Fico.<\/p>\n Fico will attend this year, too, along with other foreign dignitaries, Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said Wednesday.<\/p>\n It featured over 11,500 troops and more than 180 military vehicles, including tanks, armored infantry vehicles and artillery used on the battlefield in Ukraine, as well as huge Yars nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles as well as drones carried on military trucks. Fighter jets flew over Red Square, too.<\/p>\n