Kremlin's Victory Day parade to showcase captured Western military gear
Russians are preparing for a parade to celebrate Victory Day. The Kremlin's actions have a propagandistic nature and aim to demonstrate Russia's success in the fight "against Ukrainian fighters and their Western allies".
This year, for the occasion, the Kremlin is organizing an exhibit of Western equipment, which the German newspaper Bild service draws attention to. The Russian Ministry of Defence plans to display up to 30 pieces of equipment from twelve countries. Among them are Leopard tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles, and Marder 1A3 vehicles.
As Bild reports, this year's parade for the Russian Victory Day will take place eight days earlier than usual. Already on 1 May at Victory Park in Moscow, an exhibit of Western equipment that Russians have captured or destroyed in Ukraine will begin. The exhibition is propagandistic in nature and aims to emphasize the success of Putin's army's "special operation".
Tanks exhibition in Russia
At the exhibit, Russians will see "vehicles and firearms of foreign armies, combat documents, maps, ideological literature, and equipment," according to Bild. Visitors will also see German Leopard 2 tanks and Marder vehicles, French AMX-10RC tanks, Swedish CV90 IFVs, or American Bradley vehicles. This equipment comes from military support provided to Ukraine by allied countries. Videos showing the transport of these machines to Moscow have already appeared online. One of them indeed shows the Leopard 2 tank.
Ukrainian armoured forces have Leopard 2 tanks, mainly models 2A4 and 2A6. These are among the most popular tanks in the European part of NATO, which introduced third-generation armoured warfare machines into various armies. Leopard 2s began service in the Bundeswehr in 1979, and since then, numerous versions have been developed as advancements of their predecessors. One of the more popular is the 2A4 version, which Ukrainians often praise. This model was developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It is often called the pinnacle of the Cold War era tank development.
The Leopard 2A4's digital fire control system allows it to fire various types of ammunition. Enhanced armour with layers of titanium and tungsten was also applied. The Leopard 2A6 model is another modification of the German-produced tank. Developed in the early 2000s, this version focuses on enhancing firepower and strengthening the armour.
