Mannequins represent Ukrainian soldiers tending to a wounded man with a tattooed swastika /
The Kremlin mounts an exhibition in Moscow with the weapons seized from Ukraine in the war to show off
In his eagerness to heal the psychological traumas of the Russians, and his own, after the ‘humiliations’ suffered with the defeat in the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union, Vladimir Putin has been since he came to power, almost a quarter of a century, using the word “victory” repeatedly: in his official speeches, taking advantage of any event, press conference or public appearance. The need for constant victories in all fields, in the economic, sports, technological and, above all, military, has become obsessive, is in fact the hallmark of the Putin regime. “Without an enemy there is no fight, without a fight there is no victory,” reads one of the advertising claims released by the Russian Army in May 2014, aimed at recruiting the so-called ‘kontráktniki’, professional soldiers. That announcement appeared after the annexation of Crimea and with the war in Donbass in full swing.
It was then that Putin came up with the idea of erecting the Park Patriot (Park of the Fatherland), a huge military complex that is located 18 kilometers southwest of the Russian capital, in the vicinity of the Kúbinka air base. In addition to the airfield, the most important in the Moscow region in terms of the number of combat aircraft, the Kubinka area has a training ground for tanks, Alabino, where championships of skill in the use of armored vehicles are now being held. .
Nearby stands the Main Temple of the Russian Armed Forces, striking in its dark khaki color, and the world’s largest museum of World War II armaments captured from Hitler’s troops. From now on, the Park Patriot also has an exhibition of trophies seized from the Ukrainian Army, which the Russian authorities also consider ‘Nazi’. It has been opened on the occasion of the Armia 2022 International Forum, inaugurated last Monday the 15th with the presence of Putin and closed on Sunday, although any visitor can come during these days to see the exhibition.
Russia wants to continue boasting of being the world’s second largest arms exporter, although, according to experts, it will be increasingly difficult. It turns out that their weapons innovations require Western-made components that are already in short supply due to sanctions. Also, most of the material displayed in the Patriot Park is not being seen on the Ukrainian battlefield.
Mannequins represent Ukrainian soldiers tending to a wounded man with a tattooed swastika /
Amid the huge rows of ultramodern war material that make up the international fair that Russia organizes every year to sell its weapons, in a separate pavilion, you can see the war material that Russian troops claim to have seized from Ukrainian forces.
guided missiles
Outside there are about twenty armored vehicles with Ukrainian flags and emblems, and several speedboats used during the Battle of Mariupol. Inside the enclosure, a huge 155-millimeter US M777 cannon presides over the center of the room. Washington wants this piece of artillery to fire Excalibur guided missiles shortly, which will further complicate things for the Russian Army in its attempt to continue advancing in Ukraine.
Also on display are mines of all kinds (antitank and antipersonnel), drones, missile launchers, grenade launchers, including one made in Spain, rifles, pistols, transmission material, demining machines, the remains of a Tochka-U missile like the one that massacred civilians at the Kramatorsk (Donetsk) railway station and even a British-made armored ambulance for use in the front line of fire.
Most of the weapons displayed there are Western-made, from NATO countries, Israel or New Zealand: the M777 cannon, the American Javelin rocket launcher (the killer of Russian tanks), the fearsome Turkish Bayraktar drone.
Several Russian officials explain to the audience the meaning of the exhibition. “We want everyone to know that Western aid to Ukraine only prolongs hostilities,” says a captain attached to an armored division. In his words, “we also wanted to influence the radical, extremist and fanatical character of the Ukrainian regime.”
In one of the corners there are also some of the manuals with which Ukrainian schoolchildren study. “They are impregnated with Nazi ideology and hatred towards Russia,” says the Russian military. Among the exhibited literature there are also handbooks on how to improvise explosive devices and how to care for the wounded.
with swastika
In another of the exhibitors you can see a British armored car used as an ambulance. A wounded Ukrainian soldier with a swastika tattoo is seen on the ground.
A girl asks one of the instructors why most of the war trophies in the exhibition are in perfect condition, except for one New Zealand vehicle that burned during the skirmish and all the bodywork is rusted. “Because they ran away, abandoned their positions and left the completely new weaponry there,” replies a commander.
The truth is that, compared to the war material captured from the Russians in the Ukraine, exhibited right now in the central Kreshatik avenue in kyiv on the occasion of Independence Day, the Russian trophy collection is much more modest. They may not have gotten all that they have managed to wrest from the kyiv forces.
In addition, the atmosphere that was breathed in the Parque Patriota was not exactly euphoric. However, all the people with whom this correspondent spoke said they were sure that the Russian Army would end up winning. “It can not be otherwise,” said a young visitor who also avoided identifying himself.
72 countries from around the world participated in the contest, including Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Iran and North Korea, but none from the West. The Russian arms export company Rosoboronexport, according to its director, Alexander Mikheyev, signed two contracts for the supply to foreign customers worth about 390 million euros within the framework of the Army-2022 forum. Last year, however, Russia signed contracts worth €2 billion.