Russia marked it’s yearly May Day parade with a vastly more scaled back edition amid fears of a possible Ukrainian attack.
The annual Victory Day parade, which marks the Soviet Union’s triumph over Nazi Germany, normally represents an opportunity for the superpower to make a show of strength, but this year’s celebrations have been uncharacteristically small.
In the days leading up to the event, one of Vladimir Putin’s most important dates in the calendar, there had been fears Ukraine would launch an attack forcing Moscow to scale back celebrations in the city and across the country.
No military hardware on show
For the first time in nearly 20 years, the parade in Moscow’s Red Square featured no military hardware, just soldiers, leaving some to wonder whether Russia’s four-year-long war with Ukraine is starting to take its toll.
In previous years, there had been a number of tanks and armoured vehicles used, but not this year.
The shortest May 9 "Victory" Parade at Red Square in Moscow just ended, it lasted only 45 minutes.During the event, they also showed videos of equipment that wasn't present at the parade, including drones. pic.twitter.com/1TjYs5nm5y
— MoloMonitor (@MoloWarMonitor) May 9, 2026Russian MP Yevgeny Popov told the BBC: “Our tanks are busy right now.
“They are fighting. We need them more on the battlefield than on Red Square.”
On 13 January, the war marked a landmark milestone – the Ukraine war has officially outlasted the fighting between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany during the Second World War.
Two years ago, Russia had also showcased its Yars intercontinental ballistic missile, this was also not showcased at Saturday’s parade.
Instead, the only vehicles on show were the cars of defence minister Andrei Belousov and Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Ground Forces, Col. Gen. Andrei Mordvichev, who inspected the troops.
Russia’s Defence Minister Andrei Belousov attends a military parade on Victory Day, marking the 81st anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in Red Square in central Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2026, in this still image taken from video. Kremlin.ru/Handout via REUTERS Security measures are taken as Russian troops units gather to participate in the military parade marking the 81st anniversary of Victory Day, commemorating the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany during World War II, in Moscow, Russia, on May 09, 2026. (Photo by Sefa Karacan/Anadolu via Getty Images)Replacing the usual displays of military might at the parade was a video showcasing Russia’s drone capabilities and nuclear arsenal.
More present than Russia’s military might, were a number of security officials tasked with protecting the immediate area.
Such was the threat, reports claimed Moscow had shut down mobile internet coverage.
Last Monday a Ukrainian drone managed to penetrate Moscow’s air defences and strike a luxury high-rise apartment four miles (6km) from the Kremlin.
There were no casualties from this attack, but the threat of Ukrainian drones over the Red Square has forced Russia to pare back the celebrations, which were the shortest they’ve ever been at just 45 minutes and featured no tanks for the first time since 2008.
There have also been continued attacks on Russian energy infrastrucuture, including the vast refimner in Tuapse on the Black Sea coast.
Russian serviceman guards before the Victory Day military parade in Moscow, Saturday, May 9, 2026, during celebrations of the 81st anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany during the World War II. (Maxim Shipenkov/Pool Photo via AP) Police officers guard at Vasilevsky Spusk square before the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow. Russia celebrates the 81st anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two (WWII). (Photo by Pavel Bednyakov / POOL / AFP via Getty Images)‘Diminished’ on the world stage
In a move to indicate Ukraine’s growing dominance, Volodymyr Zelensky, issued a decree to allow the parade to go ahead and confirmed Red Square be excluded from “the plan for the use of Ukrainian weapons”.
The document also listed the exact coordinates of the Red Square. Donald Trump later announced a ceasefire between both sides.
pic.twitter.com/nZuLiWIUlx
— Ukraine / Україна (@Ukraine) May 8, 2026While victory against Ukraine has not been reached, John Foreman, former defence attaché to Moscow and Kyiv, said the failure to secure victory has been a major blow to Putin.
Foreman told The i Paper: “Victory over Ukraine is elusive. “The death toll keeps rising, the economy is in tatters, and his [Putin’s] hope that the US would help bring success on his terms have been dashed.”
With the death toll estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands, the Ukraine-Russian war has proven to be one of the deadliest European conflicts since World War Two, and Putin’s personal ratings are starting to slide as a result.
Russian law enforcement officers stand guard on an embankment of the Moskva River near St. Basil’s Cathedral before a flypast and a military parade on Victory Day, marking the 81st anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, in central Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2026. REUTERS/Marina Lystseva Russian military band marches while attending the Victory Day military parade in Moscow. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS“He made himself a hostage to fortune by claiming the mantle of military prowess of his Soviet forefathers,” said Foreman.
“His failure to date, with his own war now lasting longer than the Great Patriotic War [WWII], reveal him to be a pathetic, diminished figure rooted in the past and out of ideas.”
Ukraine can strike ‘deeper’ and ‘further’ than ever before
World leaders at the parade, which in the past have included president George Bush and Prime Minister John Major, this year include just two international leaders: Laos President Thongloun Sisoulith and Malaysian Supreme Ruler Sultan Ibrahim.
Key allies, Kim Jong-un and Xi Jinping, were not present at the parade despite heavily supporting the war on Ukraine.
“The fact it’s been scaled down so dramatically and there were so many fewer foreign guests is definitely something of an embarrassment,” historian Professor Mark Galeotti told The i Paper.
“It doesn’t necessarily reflect what’s going on on the front line, but it speaks to Ukraine’s capacity to reach out and strike deeper and further than ever before.”
Zelensky, has claimed Russia has lost at least $7bn (£5bn) since the start of the year thanks to the attacks on its oil sector.
Satellite imagery shows smoke rising from Tuapse in the southern Krasnodar region of Russia after the town’s oil refinery and shipping terminal were attacked by Ukrainian drones last month (Photo: Vantor via AP)Prof Galeotti revealed that some European nations have warned Ukraine not to risk the potentially ‘devastating response’ from Russia.
“The Russians have made it very clear that there will be a truly devastating response if there was an attack,” he said.
“For his own credibility, Putin would have to do something particularly devastating if the Ukrainians did try anything.”
Asked the same question, former defence attaché Foreman said: “I don’t expect Ukraine to attack the parade.
“Better to leave Putin to stew in the juice of his own failure in Moscow surrounded by a cast of obscure satraps while continuing to attack military targets elsewhere.”
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