2008 Moscow Victory Day Parade


The 2008 Moscow Victory Day Parade was held on Victory Day on the occasion of the 63rd anniversary of the Great Patriotic War ending in the defeat of Nazi Germany. This was the first time the Russian Federation opened its vehicle showcase since 1991, and the airshow since the Cold War. The parade was commanded by Army General Vladimir Bakin, Commander of the Moscow Military District, and reviewed by Anatoliy Serdyukov of the Russian Ministry of Defence. A speech was made by Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, who took office just two days prior. This would be notable to be the first ever major Russian military parade seen on television worldwide when RT carried a live broadcast of the parade for the first time in its history.

Parade Program

Parade formations

Note: Those indicated in bold indicate first parade appearance, those indicated with italic indicate double or multiple parade appearances.
With more than 9,000 soldier, sailors, and airmen and 100 vehicles marching in the parade, this was the largest such parade held in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union. Unlike previous Victory Day parades, there were no units parading in Great Patriotic War uniforms, though the Victory Banner was paraded at the beginning of the ceremony. Training for the parade took two months in Alabino, Moscow Oblast. On 8 May, a temporary platform with a white-blue-red banner was erected on Red Square, covering the Lenin Mausoleum.

Ground vehicles at the Parade

This was the first time in the history of post-Soviet Russia when armoured fighting vehicles took part in the Red Square parade. In order of presentation:
On 22 April, the equipment was delivered to a training ground near Moscow. Before the parade, the tracked vehicles were delivered by rail. Due to the fact that in 1995 the Resurrection Gates were restored, military equipment entered the square on from one side of the State Historical Museum, and not from two as in previous parades.

Aircraft at the Parade

In order of presentation:
; Inspection and Address
  • March of the Preobrazhensky Regiment
  • Slow March of the Tankmen by Semyon Tchernetsky
  • Slow March to Carry the War Flag by Dmitriy Valentinovich Kadeyev
  • Slow March of the Guards of the Navy by Nikolai Pavlocich Ivanov-Radkevich
  • Slow March of the Officers Schools by Semyon Tchernetsky
  • Slow March by Dmitry Pertsev
  • Slow March of the Red Army by Semyon Tchernetsky
  • Slow March by Evgeny Aksyonov
  • Glory by Mikhail Glinka
  • Parade Fanfare All Listen! by Andrei Golovin
  • State Anthem of the Russian Federation by Alexander Alexandrov
  • Signal Retreat
; Infantry Column
  • General Miloradovich by Valery Khalilov
  • Farewell of Slavianka by Vasiliy Agapkin
  • To Serve Russia by Eduard Cemyonovich Khanok
  • Lefort's March by Valery Khalilov
  • Artillery March by Tikhon Khrennikov
  • Combat March by Dmitry Illarionovich Pertsev
  • Air March by Yuliy Abramovich Khait
  • In Defense of the Homeland by Viktor Sergeyevich Runov
  • March of the Cosmonauts/Friends, I believe by Oskar Borisovich Feltsman
  • March Kant by Valery Khalilov
  • On Guard for the Peace by Boris Alexandrovich Diev
  • We Need One Victory by Bulat Shalvovich Okudzhava
  • March Hero
  • We are the Army of the People by Georgy Viktorovich Mavsesya
  • Crew is One Family by Viktor Vasilyevich Pleshak
  • On the Road by Vasily Pavlovich Solovyov-Sedoy
  • Victory Day by David Fyodorovich Tukhmanov
; Mobile Column
  • General Miloradovich by Valery Khalilov
  • Triumph of the Winners
  • "Katyusha" by Matvey Blanter
  • March Victory by Albert Mikhailovich Arutyunov
  • Ballad of a Soldier by Vasily Pavlovich Solovyov-Sedoy
; Flypast Column
  • Air March by Yuliy Abramovich Khait
  • March Airplanes – First of all by Vasili-Solovyov-Sedoi
  • Air March by Yuliy Abramovich Khait
; Conclusion
  • Long Live our State by Boris Alexandrov
  • Song of the Russian Army by Alexander Alexandrov

    Criticism

The parade has been criticized for returning to the Cold War-like display of weapons. Upon receiving personal criticism, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin stated the following: "This is not saber-rattling. We do not threaten anyone and are not going to do this, we do not impose anything on anyone". The military also allocated more than 1.3 billion rubles to the parade, many of which included the stones and asphalt concrete pavement for the mobile column, which came under criticism by opposition sources as well.