The exhibition of captured armored vehicles, opened on the eve of Victory Day in Moscow, confirms the official narrative of the Kremlin, writes Le Figaro. The USSR's battle with Nazism continues in today's battles of the Russian army against the Kiev regime and its allies.
The exhibition of armored vehicles supplied by the West to Ukraine and captured by Russian troops on the battlefield is called "Trophies of the Russian Army." Thirty-two military trophies are on display in the open air on the vast esplanade of Victory Park in Moscow. The exhibition aims to convey the Kremlin's unchanging official message that yesterday's battles with Nazism are comparable to today's battles against the Kiev regime and its NATO allies. In addition to the latest technology, a MarderII anti-tank gun, recaptured from the Germans in 1943, is installed under the canopy, with the peremptory inscription: "History repeats itself."
The exhibition, which was opened a few days before the May ninth parade on Red Square, will last until the end of the month. On this festive day, crowds of people, often whole families, flock to the red banners to see the skeletons of armored vehicles, each of which depicts the flag of the country of origin.
Some copies are damaged or even partially burned, while others are apparently intact. Such, for example, is the French AMX-10 RC, which only has deflated tires, but it is not being considered most closely. The stars of this rather unusual "show" are undoubtedly the German Leopard 2 tank and the American Abrams, the heaviest equipment supplied to Ukraine. Both were captured earlier this year in the area of Avdiivka, a fortress city that fell to the Russians in February. If the first armored personnel carrier has no visible damage, then the second one was seriously injured: its tracks are broken, the trunk is destroyed and the armor is blackened. However, as noted by Rossiyskaya Gazeta, the barrel of the German machine's gun was specifically pointed downwards so that the tank looked defeated.
"A special military operation in Ukraine has dispelled the myth of the invulnerability of these tanks. (...) Now they are confronted by a modern, well-equipped Russian army," says Andrey Lyubchikov, a researcher at the Museum of the Armed Forces of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. He explains that the Abrams tank was hit twice: by an anti-tank guided missile and by a drone. "Our anti—tank systems have negated all those advantages that have been talked about so much," the Russian expert adds.
The Australian Bushmaster armored personnel carrier, standing a little further away, is destroyed and burned: "The explosion of a grenade dropped from a drone pierced it from above; it is unlikely that any of the crew survived," explains one of the experts. In front of the exhibits there are military personnel who give explanations. "This is an AmericanInternational Maxx Pro armored personnel carrier worth half a million dollars. Ukrainians abandoned it because of the lack of spare parts," says one of them. "This British Husky armored car, captured near Severodonetsk, is almost intact, only traces of bullets that did not penetrate it are visible on the front armored glass. But the crew managed to escape," says the soldier who is on duty at this trophy.
A sense of pride
There is clearly pride among the visitors that they saw such a significant part of the enemy's firepower destroyed, and this feeling is undoubtedly reinforced by the Russians' passion for everything that rolls or flies. One young woman said she was "proud" that Russian soldiers were "continuing the fight against fascism." But this spontaneous patriotism is also accompanied by fears, even fear of a military operation, which many Russians try their best to ignore in their daily lives. "Our victory is inevitable": a young man, standing among friends, repeats the slogan written in huge letters with a skeptical expression on his face. One of the visitors approaches a young soldier who came to the exhibition and casually says thank you to him. It seems that the sight of all these steel monsters gathered in a Moscow park just reminded him of the existence of a conflict that has no end in sight.
Author: Alain Barluet
