Soldiers marched and medal-bedecked veterans waved from military trucks rolling down a main Moscow street yesterday, as Russia began a pomp-filled, high-security celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Allied victory over Nazi Germany.
About half a dozen tanks, including at least one World War II-era T-34, stood on a street near Red Square, awaiting today's military parade, which will be watched by the foreign guests. The pavement was marked by tank tracks.
Dozens of foreign leaders have been invited to the ceremonies, prompting some of the strictest security measures Moscow has seen.
PHOTO: AP
City authorities have long been urging Muscovites to leave town over the weekend, as some parts of the city center as well as roads leading to the city's airports were blocked off and accessible only to people with special passes.
Yesterday, gray-haired veterans rode on open military trucks down Moscow's main thoroughfare to Byelorussky railway station, where a train was pulled by a period locomotive in a recreation of the arrival trains bearing victorious Soviet troops back from the war.
As in 1945, the front of the locomotive bore a big portrait of a smiling Josef Stalin, the Soviet leader whose legacy is hanging over the anniversary celebrations. Many Russians feel he was the driving force behind the victory, while others revile him as a dictator who killed millions of his own citizens and say the Soviet people won the war despite his mistakes.
The 60 veterans aboard the train were greeted on the platform by women in traditional Russian costumes and war-era clothes, as well as by Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov. They were led into the square outside the station, where some waltzed as they awaited a concert in their honor.
"Today is a great day. Our victory meant that we could live and study," said Alexander Roshin, 79, a veteran who was aboard the train.
Another veteran, 80-year-old Vera Minayeva, expressed anger at economic hardship in today's Russia.
On the way to the station, soldiers stomped alongside the veterans in trucks as Russians lining the street, holding flags and balloons, chanted "Thank you" and shouted congratulations.
also see story:
Bush pays tribute to fallen soldiers
Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain, while crowds in Taipei braved the elements to watch Taipei 101’s display. South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks struck midnight in Auckland, with a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball was to drop in New York’s Times Square. The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from the 240m Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealand’s
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, and would continue to cooperate with democratic allies and work together for regional and global security, stability, and prosperity. The remarks came after the US on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was later flown to New York along with his wife. The pair face US charges related to drug trafficking and alleged cooperation with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. Maduro has denied the allegations. The ministry said that it is closely monitoring the political and economic situation
‘SLICING METHOD’: In the event of a blockade, the China Coast Guard would intercept Taiwanese ships while its navy would seek to deter foreign intervention China’s military drills around Taiwan this week signaled potential strategies to cut the nation off from energy supplies and foreign military assistance, a US think tank report said. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted what it called “Justice Mission 2025” exercises from Monday to Tuesday in five maritime zones and airspace around Taiwan, calling them a warning to “Taiwanese independence” forces. In a report released on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War said the exercises effectively simulated blocking shipping routes to major port cities, including Kaohsiung, Keelung and Hualien. Taiwan would be highly vulnerable under such a blockade, because it
UNRELENTING: China attempted cyberattacks on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure 2.63 million times per day last year, up from 1.23 million in 2023, the NSB said China’s cyberarmy has long engaged in cyberattacks against Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, employing diverse and evolving tactics, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday, adding that cyberattacks on critical energy infrastructure last year increased 10-fold compared with the previous year. The NSB yesterday released a report titled Analysis on China’s Cyber Threats to Taiwan’s Critical Infrastructure in 2025, outlining the number of cyberattacks, major tactics and hacker groups. Taiwan’s national intelligence community identified a large number of cybersecurity incidents last year, the bureau said in a statement. China’s cyberarmy last year launched an average of 2.63 million intrusion attempts per day targeting Taiwan’s critical
RSS