Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
In order to fill the parade on Victory Day, Putin is reportedly pulling combat-ready troops from Ukraine back to Moscow — and Ukraine is planning to take advantage of that.
May 9, this Saturday, is Russian Victory Day, when the Kremlin celebrates the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
Usually, there are parades in several large cities across Russia, and the parade in Moscow in particular is known to be a spectacle.
However, this year the Victory Day celebrations are being scaled back — significantly.
First of all, several parades across Russia have been cancelled.
Second, the parade in Moscow will not feature its usual rows of tanks and other armored vehicles.
Third, much of the celebration will consist of videos from Ukraine shown on big screens.
Vladimir Putin has ordered a unilateral ceasefire on May 8 and 9 — a move many see as an attempt to prevent Ukraine from attacking the celebrations and thereby humiliating the Kremlin.
In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy ordered a ceasefire starting last night, explaining the decision by saying, “We believe that human life is far more valuable than any anniversary ‘celebration.’”
But Putin’s preparations for Victory Day could give Ukraine a huge advantage on the battlefield.
Putin pulling troops
According to the partisan movement Atesh, Russia is quietly pulling its best soldiers away from active fighting.
In a post on Telegram, Atesh reported that Russian commanders are removing experienced troops from key battlegrounds, but the goal is not to regroup and prepare for a new tactical offensive.
Instead, the troops are being sent to Moscow to march in the May 9 Victory Day parade.
This leaves an enormous gap in the Russian lines in Ukraine — especially since it is not only troops that are being moved.
According to Onet, Colonel Dmytro Kashchenko of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said in an interview with the creators of “Ukrainian Focus. Morning,” a joint project of Espreso and Slava.tv, that Russia is also moving a large number of air defense systems to Moscow to protect the Victory Day celebrations.
“I think there’s a significant gap in the Russian Federation’s defense line right now, and more than one. Over the next few days, during preparations for the parade and the parade itself, we could strike several blows against command posts, supply depots, and so on,” he said, adding that this could severely disrupt Russian logistics and potentially disable the entire command system.
No need to attack Moscow
With a huge number of Russian troops and officials gathered in Moscow on Saturday, it might seem logical for Ukraine to attack the Russian capital.
However, Kashchenko does not think this would be the most effective use of the limited resources available to the Ukrainian forces.
Instead, he suggests that Ukraine should exploit the gaps in Russian defenses in Ukraine to target key infrastructure facilities, radar stations, command posts, and similar targets.
That being said, he does not rule out a strike on Moscow — simply to send a message.
“We could launch a drone strike so that the thousands of cameras recording the parade would show: ‘Look, Ukraine is closing in on you and could destroy both the Russian president [Vladimir Putin] and the defense minister [Andrei Belousov] at any moment,’” he concludes.
The tables have already turned
On May 2, the Institute for the Study of War released an analysis of the estimated territorial changes in the war over the past six months.
After Russia advanced and gained control of more than 575 km² in November 2025, the Russian advance has ground to a halt, with Ukraine pushing back the occupiers and retaking 116 km² in April 2026.
This is allegedly the largest territorial gain for Ukraine since the summer of 2024.
Sources: Atesh post on Telegram, Onet, The Institute for the Study of War
