After a May 9 parade without vehicles that would appear like a trompe-l’oeil and a standoff in Bakhmout, the Kremlin’s military capabilities in the face of a Ukrainian army bolstered by American aid are raising more and more questions.
No air parade or tanks, except for a WWII Soviet T-34… The iconic 9 May parade in Moscow left many observers in disbelief at Russia’s military prowess a little over a year after the start of the war. Is the supposedly large Russian army stunted on the Ukrainian front?
This year, the May 9 commemoration comes as the army is bogged down in its campaign, having suffered heavy casualties as a Ukrainian counter-offensive prepares. “This year we had a pathetically ridiculous motorized parade: in previous years we had 200 vehicles. There it was barely 50,” commented Jérôme Pellistrandi, former general and director of the Revue Défense Nationale. Overall four times lower than two years ago.
2,000 tanks lost
For Vladimir Putin, the goal seems clear: to save face despite a contingent exhausted by war and clearly destabilized by the Battle of Bachmout. If we take figures from the still reliable Oryx website, Russia has lost nearly 10,000 pieces of military equipment since the beginning. Losses would amount to “2,000 tanks, 80 planes, 90 helicopters,” according to Jérôme Pellistrandi, who explains that these are “proven and documented losses.” The bleeding of the Russian military apparatus is extremely strong.”
The Kremlin wants to “increase the number of Russians sent to Ukraine, but without this being too visible to the general public,” says Anna Colin Lebedev, a sociologist specializing in post-Soviet societies, “in Russia, the recruitment poster campaign has never been like this.” intensive.” An increase in the number that, in their opinion, will not be accompanied by “further training”.
Ukrainians armed to the teeth
And in response to Vladimir Putin’s speech, the US announced on the same day a new $1.2 billion in military aid to Ukraine. In particular, this aid will enable Kiev to buy equipment to strengthen its air defenses.