Russian President Vladimir Putin took a shot at the United States today while thousands of Red Army troops marched and new armories rolled by in Red Square, Moscow — Russia’s largest show of military might since the Soviet Union collapsed.
This event commemorates Victory Day, 70 years since victory against Germany in World War II.
“In recent decades the basic principles of international cooperation have been ignored ever more frequently. We see how a military-bloc mentality is gaining momentum,” said Putin.
While Putin thanked “the people of Great Britain, France and the United States for their contribution to victory” in World War II he said the West has tried to minimize Russia’s contribution to the war effort, contending that nations like the U.S. have tried to “rewrite history” regarding World War II.
Putin said World War II demonstrated the strengths of international cooperation but, likely in a nod to U.S. visibility in world affairs, warned that “in the past decades we have seen attempts to create a unipolar world,” according to the Associated Press.
The comments come as the U.S. and its allies have issued sanctions against Russia for incursions in Ukraine. Russia annexed Crimea state, an ethnic-Russian enclave of Ukraine, in March 2014 and is believed to be aiding separatists in eastern Ukraine, though Putin denies that charge.
Victory Day is Russia’s most important secular holiday as it pays homage to the nation’s war contribution and symbolizes Russia’s stature on the world stage.
