In a First in 2 Decades, Russia’s Victory Day Parade Without Military Equipment Display

For the first time in two decades, Russia will hold its Victory Day Parade on May 9, 2026, without displaying any military equipment, marking a departure.

The parade, to mark the defeat of Nazi-ruled Germany during World War 2, will take place without tanks, missiles, and other military equipment rumbling down Moscow’s Red Square, according to the Russian Defence Ministry.

The Victory Day Parade is Russia’s most important secular holiday, used by the President Vladimir Putin-governed Kremlin to showcase its military might and global clout, and as a source of Russian patriotism.

The weapons-less Victory Parade comes as the Russia-Ukraine war entered its fifth year in February 2026. The parade has involved a military equipment display every year since 2008. Similar parades are held in Russia in other cities as well, including St. Petersburg.

The Russian Defence Ministry noted that the “current operational situation” was a reason for excluding military equipment, as well as cadets, from this year’s parade that would mark the 81st anniversary of the World War 2 victory.

The parade this year would feature “servicemen from higher military educational institutions of all kinds and certain service branches of the Russian armed forces” and a traditional military aircraft flyover, the ministry said.

Putin had told US President Donald Trump in a call on Wednesday (April 29) that he was ready to announce a ceasefire with Ukraine for the Victory Day Parade, according to Russian Presidential Adviser Yuri Ushakov.

Trump had supported the idea of a ceasefire as the holiday marked “our common victory over fascism” during World War 2, Ushakov added