For the celebrations to mark the 75th anniversary of the victory of the Soviet Union over Hitler-Germany, Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin officially declared June 24 in Russia a holiday. That day there should be military parades in Moscow and other Russian cities, it said in the decree published yesterday by the Kremlin.
Putin had instructed earlier that week to make up for the parade postponed on May 9 due to the coronavirus crisis on June 24. Now he decreed the day as non-working with full wages and also ordered parades in other cities and a large fireworks display in Moscow. An air show is also planned.
The arms show with soldiers, tanks and missiles on Red Square and international guests in Moscow was originally planned as the most important political event for Putin. The fact that it will now be rescheduled in just under four weeks triggered alarm. The number of CoV deaths reached a new high yesterday in 232 cases in Russia. The country has the most infections in Europe and Asia – more than 8,000 new cases are added every day.
Criticism of major event
For this reason, experts fear that the epidemic could further worsen as a result of the mass events. There were also many CoV cases in the military. Critics are also calling for the million dollar cost of the major event to be saved and the money left to veterans and others in need in the country’s worst economic crisis since the 1990s.
Kremlin boss wants to demonstrate strength
Putin, on the other hand, wants to use the military show to demonstrate the strength of the second largest nuclear power after the United States. He chose June 24th as the historical date because that day 1945, the victory over Hitler’s Germany was celebrated with a parade on Moscow’s Red Square.
His decree said it was a matter of deep recognition of the great merits, heroism and willingness to sacrifice of the war veterans, as well as a token of gratitude from the bereaved to the victorious fighters against fascism. Because of the coronavirus threat, veterans had asked Putin to refrain from the May 9 parade. Putin now described the situation as stable, despite the further sharp rise in the number of infections.
