Russian flags, anti-Nazi slogans, patriotic songs and… A breakdown that makes Vladimir Putin disappear from the screens.

Russia celebrated this Friday the eight years of the annexation of Ukrainian Crimea, in the midst of the war in Ukraine.

“For a world without Nazism”, “For Russia”, proclaimed banners unfurled in the packed Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, as Russia justifies its military operation in Ukraine by the need to “denazify” the country, accused to perpetrate a genocide of Russian-speaking populations.

Sudden interruption

“Z” also adorned the chests of speakers performing in front of the crowd, this letter having become a patriotic symbol because it is inscribed on many Russian tanks deployed in combat zones.

The highlight of the show, for 95,000 spectators in the stadium and 100,000 outside according to a police count, was the speech of the Russian president, who came in a navy blue jacket and a cream turtleneck sweater.

Vladimir Putin was praising the heroism of the Russian soldiers engaged in Ukraine when suddenly the public television channel Rossiya-24 interrupted its intervention, showing other moments of the same event.

"Technical failure on a server"

Fifteen minutes later, television resumed broadcasting the intervention of the master of the Kremlin, delayed.

Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov then told Russian news agencies that the broadcast had been disrupted by a "technical failure on a server".

Celebrating in his speech the "return" of Crimea to Russia in 2014, annexed after a pro-Western revolution in kyiv, the president praised the forces engaged today in Ukraine, citing in particular the Bible.

“

 Ukraine

and Crimea, Belarus and Moldova, this is my country”

“The words that come to me are those of the holy scriptures: there is no greater love than to lay down your life for your friends,” he said, walking onto the stage.

To the sound of "Russia, Russia" chanted by the crowd, he hailed the "heroism" of Russian soldiers who "fight, who act, during this military operation side by side, and who, if necessary, cover of their body" their comrade to cut the trajectory "of a bullet.

"It's been a long time since we had experienced such unity," he said.

The event was also marked by the patriotic songs of famous singers.

Oleg Gazmanov took over the hit "Made in the USSR", which notably proclaims "Ukraine and Crimea, Belarus and Moldova, this is my country".

World

War in Ukraine: From the stagnation of Russian troops to “kamikaze” drones, the conflict in four infographics

World

War in Ukraine: Where have more than 3.2 million refugees fled to?

  • Vladimir Poutine

  • World

  • War in Ukraine

  • Russia

  • 0 comment

  • 0 share

    • Share on Messenger

    • Share on Facebook

    • Share on Twitter

    • Share on Flipboard

    • Share on Pinterest

    • Share on Linkedin

    • Send by Mail

  • To safeguard

  • A fault ?

  • To print