Russia holds Victory Day parade without tanks and missiles in first since Ukraine war

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For the first time since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia's annual Victory Day parade will proceed without its customary display of military equipment, the Defence Ministry has confirmed.

The traditional May 9 event, marking the 81st anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II, usually sees military hardware rumble through Moscow's Red Square, a key showcase of the nation's military might.

The ministry's statement cited the "current operational situation" as the reason for excluding both a military equipment convoy and cadets from the parade, offering no further elaboration on the decision.

Despite the absence of ground vehicles, the parade is still scheduled to feature "servicemen from higher military educational institutions of all kinds and certain service branches of the Russian Armed Forces," alongside a traditional military aircraft flyover, according to the ministry.

World War II is a rare event in the nation’s divisive history under Communist rule that is revered by all political groups, and the Kremlin has used that sentiment to encourage national pride and underline Russia’s position as a global power.

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.

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.

Last year's parade was the largest since Russia sent troops into Ukraine, and drew the most global leaders to Moscow in a decade, including high-profile guests like Chinese President Xi Jinping, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico.

open image in gallery Russian T-90M tanks drive through central Moscow during a rehearsal for the Victory Day parade in 2025. ( AFP/Getty )

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 launchers and drones carried on military trucks. Fighter jets flew over Red Square, too.

Putin had declared a unilateral 72-hour ceasefire starting May 7, and the authorities blocked cellphone internet in Moscow for several days in an effort to avert Ukrainian drone attacks.

In 2023, the parade was scaled down, with fewer troops and military equipment on display and no flyover.