День Победы!

From Wikipedia:
"2010 Moscow Victory Day Parade"

The Moscow Victory Day Parade of 2010 was held on 9 May 2010 to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the capitulation of Nazi Germany. The parade marks the Soviet Union's victory in the Great Patriotic War.

The 2010 parade was the largest parade held in Moscow since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, and saw 10,000 troops, 127 aircraft and helicopters, and the new Topol-M mobile ICBM missile, taking part. For the first time, the 2010 parade also includes military units from foreign countries who were allied with the Soviet Union during World War II, with representation from France, Poland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and members of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

The 9 May Victory Day Parade in Moscow involved more than 10,000 troops marching, 160 military vehicles and 127 military aircraft, making it the largest parade to be held since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.

Twenty aviation groups of the Russian Air Force took part in the parade, which saw the Ilyushin Il-76, Ilyushin Il-78, Antonov An-124, Sukhoi Su-27, Ilyushin Il-80, Beriev A-50, Tupolev Tu-22M3, Sukhoi Su-25, Mikoyan MiG-29, Mikoyan MiG-31, Tupolev Tu-95 and Tupolev Tu-160 performing fly-bys. Also taking part for the first time were Yakovlev Yak-130 and Mil Mi-26 aircraft and helicopters. It was also announced that the mobile ICBM Topol-M missile will make its first appearance at the 2010 parade.

Foreign military

The 2010 Parade marks the first time that foreign soldiers have joined Russian forces on Red Square for the parade. The United States was represented by the 2nd Battalion of the 18th Infantry Regiment. The United Kingdom was represented by a detachment from the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards and the Central Band of the Royal Air Force. Poland was represented by the Guards of Honour of the Polish Army. France was represented by pilots and aircraft from the Normandie-Niemen Air Regiment. Battalions from the armed forces from the Commonwealth of Independent States also marched on Red Square., with troops from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Belarus and Ukraine among them. Upon request from the government of Turkmenistan, the contingent from Turkmenistan was led by an officer riding on horseback, with the horse being flown into Moscow from Ashgabat.

Opposition

The Communist Party of the Russian Federation held a May Day rally in Moscow, at which several thousand protesters used the rally to decry the inclusion of troops from NATO countries in the Parade.

International dignitaries

World leaders present at the 2010 Victory Day ParadeMihai Ghimpu, the Acting President of Moldova stated in late April 2010 that after previously accepting an invitation from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to attend the celebrations, that he would not be attending, claiming "I have no ties with Moscow. Only the victorious are going, what will the defeated do there?" Concerns also arose that a Moldovan contingent would not be able to attend the parade due to financial difficulties in the country, but a Moldovan government source told Kommersant that this was only an excuse, and Ghimpu was choosing to improve Moldova's relations with Romania, which was not invited to attend the celebrations as it was a Nazi ally during World War II. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov responded to remarks by Ghimpu, which also included the opinion that Russia should pay Moldova compensation for what he claimed was a "Soviet occupation", by urging Moldovan authorities not to use the occasion for political speculation. King Michael of Romania, the last chief of state alive from WWII, was invited by Russian president Medvedev to attend the ceremony.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel confirmed her attendance on 30 April,as did Acting President of Poland Bronisław Komorowski. Komorowski's attendance is said to be part of an effort to bolster Poland–Russia relations, which had seen improvement after the death of Polish President Lech Kaczyński in a plane crash near Smolensk in early April 2010. Kaczyński is said to have confirmed his attendance at the Parade shortly prior to the crash in which he was killed,[11] with reports in the week prior to his death showing that he was questioning his attendance.

Chinese President Hu Jintao confirmed his attendance at the parade on 3 May. The following day Slovak President Ivan Gašparovič's attendance was confirmed. Other world leaders to have confirmed their attendance include Czech President Václav Klaus, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Serbian President Boris Tadić, Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov, and Vietnamese President Nguyễn Minh Triết, Leaders from Azerbaijan, Armenia, Croatia, Estonia, Greece, Israel, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Mongolia and Slovenia are also said to have confirmed their attendance.

Both the United Kingdom and the United States had planned to send high profile representatives. Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, was invited to Russia, but because of the UK general election was unable to attend; the Foreign and Commonwealth Office suggested Charles, Prince of Wales, instead. Barack Obama, the President of the United States, was also unable to attend, but offered Vice President Joe Biden instead. According to The Guardian, both figures were rejected by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, however, in what was percieved as a diplomatic snub to both countries. This was put down to poor British relations with Russia over the UK's continuing refusal to extradite Boris Berezovsky over Russian charges of embezzlement, and because of Biden's close relations with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who is widely unpopular in Russia because of the 2008 Russia–Georgia War. The UK and US were instead represented by their ambassadors to Russia, Dame Anne Pringle and John Beyrle respectively.

^ As I said before, it is about time Russia did this (invited the other Allies to join in the celebration.)I only wish they had invited all the former Soviet Republics - like Georgia. It is 65 years since the end of the war and while time passes the sacrifices of all the Allied men and women does not. ^

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_Moscow_Victory_Day_Parade