Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen on screen as he delivers a speech during the 77th anniversary of Victory Day at Red Square in Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2022.
Anadolu Agency | Anadolu Agency | fake images
President Vladimir Putin on Monday tried to defend Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in his annual “Victory Day” speech, urging his forces to victory and evoking Russia’s triumph over Nazi Germany in World War II. World.
Speaking before a massive parade of troops, tanks and military equipment in Moscow, Putin claimed that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine had been necessary because the West was “preparing for the invasion of our land, including Crimea”, according to translated comments. by Reuters.
It is not clear whether Putin was referring to Russia or the territory that Moscow considers Russian. This includes Crimea, which was annexed from Ukraine in 2014, and the eastern Donbas region, where Donetsk and Luhansk, two self-proclaimed pro-Russian “republics”, are located.
Putin provided no evidence for his claims, but used the speech to criticize NATO allies and Ukraine, and to justify what Russia claims is a “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Before the invasion, Russia had amassed nearly 200,000 troops along its border with Ukraine, all the while insisting that it had no intention of invading. There was little evidence of Ukraine’s military aggression towards Russia, but Moscow’s claims to the contrary were seen by many as a pretext to justify its attack.
Russian honor guards march on Red Square during the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2022.
Kirill Kudryavtsev | Afp | fake images
The comments come as Russia commemorates one of the most important events on its national calendar, Victory Day, which marks the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
Evoking that victory in his speech on Monday, Putin urged the Russian military to achieve victory in Ukraine and said it was a duty to remember those who defeated Nazism.
“Defending the homeland when its destiny is decided has always been sacred,” he said. “Today you are fighting for our people in Donbas, for the security of Russia, our homeland.”
focus of donbas
Putin referred to the Donbas numerous times throughout the speech, appearing to double down on Russia’s new strategy of focusing on the “liberation” of Donetsk and Luhansk.
The region has been the scene of some of the heaviest fighting since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, including several alleged war crimes, such as the bombing of a theater in Mariupol where civilians were sheltering, which killed hundreds of people.
A security guard stands in Red Square ahead of the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2022. Russia marks the 77th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany during World War II.
Alexander Nemenov | Afp | fake images
The southern port city of Mariupol is particularly important to Putin, as it would allow a land bridge to be created between Russia and Crimea (annexed in 2014), through the Donbas region.
Fighting in the east appears to be increasing, and this weekend Russia bombed a school in a village in eastern Ukraine killing around 60 people, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during a speech to G-7 leaders in Ukraine on Sunday. the most industrial nations in the world.
Russia has not commented on the latest attack. It has previously denied targeting civilian infrastructure despite much evidence to the contrary.
Russia’s invasion has drawn international condemnation and a series of far-reaching economic sanctions on the country’s key sectors, companies and individuals connected to the Kremlin.
Russian officers march during a Victory Day parade rehearsal on May 7, 2022 in Moscow, Russia.
Tian Bin | China News Service | fake images
Putin seems unrepentant, however, repeatedly promising to purge Ukraine of what he calls its “Nazi” nationalist leadership, an unsubstantiated, widely discredited claim that is seen as Putin’s way of justifying the invasion to a national audience.
G-7 leaders on Sunday vowed to further Russia’s economic isolation and condemned the invasion, saying in a statement that Putin’s actions “shame Russia and the historic sacrifices of its people,” referring to the Soviet Union’s role in the defeat of Nazi Germany.
Zelenskyy, who is Jewish, posted a video on Sunday that was shot in front of half-destroyed Ukrainian apartment blocks after Russian bombing. In it, the Ukrainian president said that evil had returned, but insisted that his country would not lose the war. “Russia will lose, because evil always loses,” he said.