Yesterday Russia celebrated its main holiday, Victory Day—the anniversary of the Soviet Union’s triumph over Nazi Germany in World War II. Victory Day has of course been celebrated since Soviet times, but upon taking power, Putin set out to revive the day’s significance, refashioning it to be a constant source of national pride for Russians. By focusing attention on the critical role played by the Soviet Union in WWII, Putin sought to get approval, by analogy, for his own efforts to raise the profile of modern Russia on the international stage. The massive military parades in Red Square, overseen by …read more
Source: The American Interest
