In Russian military parade meant to project power, analysts see ‘real vulnerability’

Russia’s Victory Day parade in Red Square over the weekend came and went without the usual accompaniment of high-end weapon systems and power projection that has long symbolized the annual event, as Moscow decided to scale back on both hardware and military personnel amid fears of a Ukrainian attack.

While normally defense analysts use the parade to gauge Russian military and technical prowess, several told Breaking Defense that this year the lack of gear showed something else: Moscow’s implicit acknowledgement that Ukrainian capabilities remains a serious threat, more than four years since Russia’s invasion.

One described it also as potentially a watershed moment in President Vladimir Putin’s declining grip on power, behind only the short-lived coup by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the former leader of the Wagner Group.

Read more at Breaking Defense