Putin’s Trophies: Ahead Of Victory Day, Russian Prez Flaunts American, British Tanks Captured In Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin in a brazen show of strength paraded a selection of American and British tanks in Moscow. These tanks were captured during the ongoing 2022 Russo-Ukrainian war. The display involves a British Saxon armoured personnel carrier, which the UK gave Ukraine in 2015.

A banner unfurled above the display in Russian read: “Our victory is inevitable”.

The display is part of a month-long exhibition and also features an American Bradley tank, a Swedish CV90 and a French-made AMX-10RC armoured fighting vehicle, according to a report by The Independent.

“The exhibition will feature more than 30 units of military equipment from the United States, Britain, Germany, France, Turkiye, Sweden, South Africa, Finland, Australia, Austria, and Ukraine,” state-run Sputnik said in a report.

Some armoured vehicles also featured British and US flags. The exhibition, which is being displayed near the World War II museum on Poklonnaya Hill in Moscow, will run alongside Moscow’s Red Square Victory Day Parade on May 9 to celebrate Russia’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two.

Vladimir Putin also ordered a similar exhibition last year before the Victory Day celebrations. Last year, more than 800 weapon types captured from the battlefield in Ukraine were put on display during a military expo in Moscow.

Putin says his so-called military operation in Ukraine is similar to Russia’s fight against Hitler’s Nazi Germany.

Ukraine’s army leader admitted Sunday that Kyiv’s position on the battlefield has worsened after Russian forces captured another village in the east, pressing their advantage in manpower and ammunition.

Russia’s troops are advancing in the eastern Donetsk region as Kyiv awaits the arrival of much-needed US weapons that it hopes will stabilise the fragile front lines.

“The situation at the front has worsened,” Ukrainian commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrsky said in a Facebook post Sunday.

Ukrainian troops had “retreated” westwards to new defensive lines in a section of the front that runs past the city of Donetsk, controlled by pro-Russian forces since 2014.

(with inputs from AFP)