Columns of tanks, nuclear missile launchers, new drones and robotic fighting vehicles trundled through Moscow’s Red Square on Wednesday in Russia’s annual Victory Day celebration.

The parade marked the 73rd anniversary of the end of the Second World War – a war that saw the Soviet Union lose more than 20 million people.

President Vladimir Putin stood with his back to Lenin’s preserved remains, flanked by Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister. In a short speech heavy on geopolitics, Mr Putin claimed the historical victory and issued a warning to contemporary foes.

“The Soviet Union determined the outcome of that war, saving millions,” he said. “Some people are currently trying to rewrite and distort history – and will never allow them to do that.”

Putin and Netanyahu toast during a reception after the parade (AP)

The independent pollsters Levada Centre say Mr Putin was with his people on this point. Their research suggests as many as 68 per cent of Russians believe the country would have beaten Hitler without assistance from allies.

First organised by Stalin in 1945, the parade has traditionally a dual purpose of honouring veterans and projecting military resolve. But as the numbers of surviving veterans fall, the day has slowly swung towards the needs of the state.

“There’s only about 10,000 left of us in Moscow,” said Boris Davidov, 90, who was just 15 when he joined the navy in 1943.

Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Show all 24 1 /24 Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War A legendary World War II era Soviet tank T-34 AP Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with military personnel during the Victory Day parade at Red Square AFP/Getty Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian army MiG-29 jet fighters of the Strizhi (Swifts) and Su-30 jet fighters of the Russkiye Vityazi (Russian Knights) aerobatic teams fly in formation Reuters Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russia's newest robotic complex Uran-9 takes part in the Victory Day military parade EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian troops march during the Victory Day military parade AP Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian servicemen drive military vehicles during the Victory Day parade Reuters Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian servicewomen march at Red Square AFP/Getty Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attend the Victory Day military parade EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian Msta S artillery vehicles AFP/Getty Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War People carrying picturers of fallen soldiers queue to pay their respect at the Soviet War Memorial AFP/Getty Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russia's new generation of strategic missiles Yars EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian President and the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during the Victory Day military parade EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Army ATV-1 during the parade Rex Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian military servicemen march during Victory Day parade in Moscow EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Buk-M2 air defence missile systems parade through Red Square AFP/Getty Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War A Russian World War II veteran is greeted by a young boy after the Victory Day military parade EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian servicemen ride on a military vehicle Reuters Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian honour guards march AFP/Getty Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian President Vladimir Putin, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attend a wreath laying ceremony to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier after the Victory Day parade EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War epa06721489 A Russian BTR- MDM Rakushka (Shell) airborne armoured personnel carrier (APC) takes part the Victory Day military parade in the Red Square in Moscow, Russia, 09 May 2018. Russia marks the 73rd anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War II. EPA/SERGEI ILNITSKY EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War WWII veterans take part in celebrations marking the 73rd anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany during World War II AFP/Getty Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian President Vladimir Putin, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu take part in a wreath laying ceremony AFP/Getty Images Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russia's Msta-S self-propelled howitzers during the Victory Day military parade EPA Victory Day 2018: Russia commemorates end of Second World War Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, toast during a reception after the Victory Parade AP

“Many of us now feel forgotten and are not even invited to military functions anymore. We get double pensions, but we still live crappily, as they say.”

Over the years, Mr Putin has gradually made Victory Day the major event on the state calendar. In 2007, he authorised the reintroduction of tanks and missile launchers into the show. They had been withdrawn in the 1990s for image and practical reasons – they were ruining the stone of Red Square. Today, they took pride of place in the procession.

Aside from the usual hits – tanks, fighting vehicles and missile launchers – there were several new machines on show. New drone complexes, some painted in Arctic camouflage colours, added a convenient postscript to Mr Putin’s pugnacious prelude.

New “Terminator” fighting vehicles and updates to the Armata and T-72 tank series also roared across the cobbles.

Servicemen march in formation during a Victory Day military parade (TASS/Getty)

But the main novelties on show were in the air.

First came the new Su-57 stealth fighter, a fifth-generation aircraft capable of flying at 1,500mph, and designed as a competitor to the US’s F-22 Raptor.

Then came the strategic bombers, and MiG-31 fighter jets, equipped with the Kinzhal missile system. This is a new hypersonic weapon first revealed by Mr Putin in his March state-of-the-nation address. Some have suggested that it is not quite yet battle ready, but few will want to test that assumption.

The new releases came off the back of massive increases in military spending since 2012. While the ongoing sanctions regime and a stagnant economy meant last year there were cuts in military spending for the first time in two decades, the results of Russia’s investment are already substantial.

This was no doubt one of the reasons why the Israeli prime minister was one of only two foreign heads of state to attend the show.

It was his second visit to Moscow this year, but there was an urgency to this visit. By his own admission, Mr Netanyahu was in town to use Moscow’s leverage to block Iranian military buildup in southern Syria.

This, he has suggested, posed an existential threat to Israel, and was “the major threat in the Middle East”.

Some in Moscow have suggested the timing of his visit, a day after US President Donald Trump signalled his intention to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal, was not coincidental.