Over 12,000 troops to march across Moscow’s Red Square in WWII Victory Parade on May 9

Also, more than 190 weapon systems and 76 aircraft are planned to be involved in the military parade.

MOSCOW, March 25. /TASS/. Over 12,500 personnel will participate in the military parade on Moscow’s Red Square on May 9 to celebrate the 76th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in the 1941-1945 Great Patriotic War, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Thursday.

"Over 12,500 personnel, more than 190 weapon systems and 76 aircraft are planned to be involved in the military parade in Moscow on May 9," the defense chief said at the ministry’s board meeting.

The parade’s mechanized column will include 35 types of new and modernized military hardware, he specified.

Timely measures have helped prevent the spread of the coronavirus infection among the personnel of parade units, he said.

"This was largely facilitated by the compliance with the established requirements: only those who have been vaccinated and have COVID-19 antibodies are admitted to the training and its provision," the defense chief said.

The preparations for the May 9 military parade on Moscow’s Red Square "are in full swing," the defense minister said.

Source: ITAR-TASS 25-03-2021

Russian ambassador thanks US citizens for letters with apologies for Washington’s moves

Anatoly Antonov said he was 'deeply touched' by those letters.

WASHINGTON, March 20. /TASS/. Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov on Friday thanked US citizens who had sent to the Russian embassy letters expressing support for friendly Russian-US relations and apologizing for Washington’s ill-considered moves towards Moscow.

"I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the citizens of the United States who have sent to the Embassy letters in support of the development of friendly relations between Russia and the United States. Many people expressed their disagreement and apologized for the ill-considered statements about the Russian Federation made recently from Washington," Antonov said in a statement, posted on the embassy’s Facebook page.

"I am deeply touched by the caring and active position of ordinary Americans who understand that dialogue between our countries should be based on mutual respect and equality. This approach of U.S. citizens indicates that a potential for normalizing ties between the peoples of Russia and the United States is still there," he continued.

"I hope that the Administration will heed the voices of the voters and discontinue its course aimed at further devastation of the already excessively confrontational relations," the ambassador added.

Interviewed on the ABC television network on Wednesday US President Joe Biden said that the Russian leadership would have to "pay a price" for Moscow’s alleged intervention in US elections. Moreover, Biden replied in the affirmative, when asked if he regarded Putin as a "killer."

The Russian Embassy in the United States said on Facebook on Wednesday that "on March 20, Ambassador of Russia to the United States Anatoly Antonov is leaving for Moscow for consultations." Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement that Antonov had been invited to Moscow for consultations on ways to mend Russia-US ties.

Source: ITAR-TASS 20-03-2021

Kiev forces launch drone strike on Donetsk republic, DPR’s mission says

The Kiev forces launched a drone from the Ukrainian-controlled Vodyanoye village, the DPR’s mission noted.

DONETSK, March 14. /TASS/. Ukraine’s Armed Forces dropped an improvised explosive device from a drone near the Leniskoye village in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic’s south, the Donetsk News Agency reported on Sunday citing the DPR’s mission to the Joint Center for Ceasefire Control and Coordination.

The incident occurred at 12:15 p.m. Moscow Time. The Kiev forces launched a drone from the Ukrainian-controlled Vodyanoye village, the DPR’s mission noted.

Earlier on Sunday, the DPR mission reported that Ukraine’s forces shelled the Donetsk republic twice the previous day, firing 14 munitions. On Saturday, the DPR’s people's militia informed that it had shot down the Ukrainian forces’ drone which was used to adjust fire on the Luganskoye village to the south of Donetsk.

Source: ITAR-TASS 14-03-2021

MiG-29K fighters go on combat duty on Russian Arctic archipelago for first time

The experimental combat duty increases the zone of controlled airspace over the Northern Sea Route, according to the Northern Fleet’s press office.

MOSCOW, March 12. /TASS/. The crews of deck-based MiG-29K fighters have gone on experimental combat duty on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago in the Arctic for the first time, the Northern Fleet’s press office reported on Friday.

"The replacement of the flight personnel and MiG-31BM fighters of a seperate composite aviation regiment took place at the Northern Fleet’s Rogachyovo airfield. They were replaced for the first time by pilots of deck-based MiG-29K fighters of the 100th shipborne aviation regiment of the Northern Fleet’s Air Force and Air Defense Army," the press office said in a statement.

The experimental combat duty by pilots of the Northern Fleet’s Air Force and Air Defense Army on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago expands the area of employing the Fleet’s fighter aviation in the Arctic and increases the zone of controlled airspace over the Northern Sea Route, the statement says.

An anti-aircraft missile regiment of the Northern Fleet’s 45th Air Force and Air Defense Army armed with S-400 ‘Triumf’ surface-to-air missile systems assumed combat duty on the Novaya Zemlya archipelago several years ago.

The 100th shipborne aviation regiment is outfitted with generation 4+ MiG-29K fighters. The regiment’s pilots participated in the long-distance deployment of the Northern Fleet’s carrier group in the Mediterranean Sea led by Russia’s heavy aircraft-carrying cruiser Admiral of the Fleet of the Soviet Union Kuznetsov.

Source: ITAR-TASS 12-03-2021