By KYIV. May 10 (Interfax-Ukraine) – The traditional military parade on May 9 in Moscow in 2023 demonstrated the main problems of the Russian armed forces, which they faced 15 months after the start of full-scale aggression against Ukraine, British intelligence experts say.
“On 09 May 2023, the make-up of Russia’s annual Victory Day Parade in Red Square highlighted the materiel and strategic communications challenges the military is facing 15 months into the war in Ukraine,” according to a defense intelligence report tweeted by the British and Northern Ireland Department of Defense on Monday morning.
It is reported that over 8,000 personnel reportedly took part in the parade, but the majority were auxiliary, paramilitary forces, and cadets from military training establishments. As experts note, the only personnel from deployable formations of regular forces were contingents of Railway Troops and military police and a vintage T-34 from a ceremonial unit was the sole tank on parade.
“Despite heavy losses in Ukraine, Russia could have fielded more armoured vehicles. The authorities likely refrained from doing so because they want to avoid domestic criticism about prioritising parades over combat operations,” British intelligence noted.
