The sun shone, birds twittered in the shrubbery alongside the Kremlin's walls and pathways, Moscow's golden domes gleamed in the bright light of a bright day, and the bad manners of the European and American leadership's ingrates and hypocrites, who boycotted the event, had an effect comparable to that of water off a duck's back..

From the parade's opening moment, when – in a first – Russia's much-loved Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu, bowed his head and made the sign of the Orthodox cross before signaling his driver to proceed, the largest Victory Day parade Moscow has ever undertaken came off without a hitch; Putin delivered a gracious speech, the large military band performed with great aplomb, sixteen thousand soldiers and seamen marched smartly across Red Square, joined by troops from over ten countries including China, Mongolia and India, and a contingent of female military cadets made their first appearance among parade participants. The Air Force, led by Hero of Russia Lieutenant General Viktor Bondarev, flying the lead plane, a beautifully-designed TU 160-M long range strategic bomber, performed their fly-overs expertly. The entire extravaganza was well-organized and crisply executed, lasting little more than an hour top to bottom.