MINSK, February 25. /TASS/. The parade units of the Russian and Chinese armed forces have been invited to join the military parade that will take place in Minsk on May 9, marking the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War, Major General Leonid Kasinsky, the Belarusian defense minister’s assistant for ideological work, said.
"We have invited parade units from our friendly countries - the Russian Federation and China - as well as banner groups from CIS member states. Some of them have already confirmed their participation," he pointed out, as cited by the Belarusian Defense Ministry.
According to Kasinsky, "the very concept of the parade is quite a large-scale one as over 24 parade units are expected to take part, along with aircraft." The parade will showcase "cutting-edge equipment, which is in service" with the Belarusian army, from armored vehicles to various electronic warfare systems, he specified.
The Defense Ministry official noted that this year, the parade would consist "of two separate parts, with one of them based on history and the other reflecting today’s reality." "The historical part will involve vintage equipment and troops wearing the uniforms and carrying the weapons of the [Great Patriotic] War era," Kasinsky added. "In fact, the historical part will be based on certain elements from the Victory Parade that took place in Moscow in 1945. Legendary T-34 tanks will take part in the event as part of a mechanized column. The parade will for the first time showcase the famous ‘tachankas’ - open carts equipped with machine guns," the Belarusian defense minister’s assistant said.