Thousands of officers decked out in 1940s military uniforms have marched on Moscow’s Red Square to mark the 75th anniversary of the 1941 parade when Soviet soldiers headed to the front lines in World
ADVERTISEMENTThousands of officers decked out in 1940s military uniforms have marched on Moscow’s Red Square to mark the 75th anniversary of the 1941 parade when Soviet soldiers headed to the front lines in World War Two.
According to Russia’s TASS news agency some 5,000 people were taking part.
“That parade was something special,” said WW2 veteran Ivan Bushmin.
On November 7, 1941 German forces were just a few dozen kilometres from Moscow. In August, they had captured Smolensk, a strategically important stop before Moscow. But then Hitler diverted troops to Kyiv. The USSR began its winter counter-offensive which was to become known as the Battle of Moscow which slowed and eventually stopped the Nazi advance on the Soviet capital.