As the military launches an offensive in Ukraine and all forms of dissent in Russia are firmly suppressed, President Vladimir V. Putin will take center stage in two major events this week that will demonstrate his commitment to the country. political dominance and his determination to win. Ukraine.
Putin, 71, will officially begin his fifth term as Russia’s president in an elaborate inauguration ceremony at the Kremlin on Tuesday. On Thursday, he will preside over the Victory Day parade in Red Square, an annual show of military might that over the past two years has sought to symbolically link Russia’s war in Ukraine to the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. .
The Kremlin is also expected to nominate a prime minister and Five key ministers, including foreign ministers and defense ministers, although officials in those six positions may simply be renominated. The makeup of Russia’s next government will provide a signal for the country’s direction in the coming years.
Putin won a fifth term in March in a rubber-stamp election that Western countries dismissed as a sham. Regardless, the ceremony will be triumphant and full of symbolism.
The country’s parliamentarians, regional governors, religious leaders, senior officials and other guests will arrive at the Kremlin from the nearby Senate Palace, where the presidential palace is located.
Putin will travel in a new and upgraded version of a Russian-made limousine, state media reported, sending a message that Russia can sustain itself despite being largely cut off from Western markets.
Hundreds of Russian officials and guests will stand on either side as Mr Putin enters, while an orchestra plays ceremonial music. Putin will take an oath to “respect and safeguard the rights and freedoms of people and citizens.” He will then deliver a brief speech.
This time, the ceremony may have a new element that emphasizes Russia as a country waging war in Ukraine. Soldiers and officers attending the event were likely among the guests.
The inauguration will take place two days before the annual Victory Day parade. Unlike last year, when Russia anxiously awaited a Ukrainian counteroffensive, this year Putin will be bolder in watching a parade of tanks and soldiers on Red Square.
His forces have been on the offensive in Ukraine since last fall, repeatedly attacking Ukraine’s depleted defenses. Over the past few weeks, Russia has seized village after village, threatening logistical lines west of the Ukrainian city of Avdievka.
The fruits of these advances were already on display in Moscow, where authorities displayed Western-supplied weapons seized in Ukraine: tanks (with their barrels bent downward to indicate failure), armored vehicles and other equipment.
“Our victory is certain!” one of the posters read, as people walked by taking photos of American Abrams and German Panther tanks, howitzers and minesweepers.a message on the screen explain: “Staff at the U.S., German, French and Polish embassies can skip the line.”
Unlike pre-war military parades, only leaders of a handful of former Soviet states and countries with limited status on the international stage are expected to participate.
They include leaders from Laos in Asia, Guinea-Bissau in Africa and Cuba in the Americas. Former Soviet countries Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Belarus, Turkmenistan and Kyrgyzstan have confirmed their attendance.
Cabinet reshuffle
Over the past few weeks, government officials and Kremlin watchers have been speculating about what Putin’s new cabinet and government would look like.In a country where bureaucratic positions are often based on personal relationships and loyalties, the Kremlin’s ministerial posts and other senior positions carry considerable influence
By law, cabinet ministers must resign after Putin takes office. He then needs to nominate a candidate for the position of prime minister to the State Duma (lower house of parliament), who then nominates government ministers.
Several key ministers, including those responsible for defense and foreign policy, were nominated by Putin and approved by the Federation Council, the upper house of parliament.
There is no indication that Putin will succeed Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin; Sergey Shoigu, Defense Minister; or Foreign Minister Sergei V. Lavrov. But there may be surprises. Even retaining them would send a powerful message: Putin believes he has a winning team and the Kremlin is satisfied with Russia’s current progress in Ukraine and its international standing.
