Minsk Independence Day Parade
The Minsk Independence Day Parade () also known as the July 3 Parade is the main event of the Independence Day of Belarus. This parade is held annually in Minsk on July 3 and is one of the most frequently held military parades in Eastern Europe, as well as the former Soviet Union. It is held every year except years that celebrate Victory Day (9 May), to which Victory Day Parades are held. Summary. The celebrations begin as the parade commander (usually the Deputy Defense Minister) arrives to take command of the parade formations from a commander  of the first company participating in the parade. At 10am, the President of Belarus arrives on Victors Avenue and gets on the central grandstand to await the start of the parade. The parade commander gives the order to begin the review of the Minsk Garrison by the Defence Minister of Belarus, the parade presenting arms at this juncture. The Deputy Defense Minister of Belarus then reports to the Defense Minister on the status of the parade. Following the report, to the tune of the Central Band of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus playing inspection tunes, both  the parade commander and the Defense Minister then review the parade mounted in their vehicles and the Minister, once the vehicles stop upon each company of troops assembled, then congratulates them on the holiday. After this, the defense minister's car heads to the central tribune to the tune of "Motherland My Dear" ("Радзіма мая дарагая") so that the minister can report to the president on the readiness of the parade once his limousine stops in front of the presidential grandstand, following which he disembarks and arrives there, following which the parade is ordered at ease. The president then delivers  an address to the nation and congratulates the citizens on the holiday. At the end of the speech, My Belarusy is played by the Central Band of the Armed Forces, with a 21-gun salute being fired in the background. The commander of the parade then gives the order for the Minsk Garrison to commence the parade while at the same time the linemen take their places to mark the distance of the troops marching past. The order now concluded, the parade then marches off in quick time with the drummers of the Corps of Drums of the Minsk Suvorov  Military School setting the pace. As the Corps' bandmaster orders the halt, the massed bands start playing a military march (usually "Letter from the 45th" by Igor Luchenko as the first song) as he salutes while the drummers swing on the eyes right position. The drummers are just the first of the large ground column of an estimated 2,900 service personnel that marches past the presidential grandstand. There are generally 10 officers and around 140 conscripts in each formation. At the end of the ground columns, the massed bands play "Den Pobedy" by David Tukhmanov before sounding off to "The  Sacred War" as the mobile column passes through. The exhibition drill at the end of the parade, performed by the Honor Guard of the Armed Forces of Belarus has been held annually since 2002 and shows off the military drill of the armed forces. Following the drill routine, the massed bands sing "Our Fatherland's Flag" (Айчыны нашай сцяг) before marching off the avenue, officially closing the parade. Annual and guest participants in the Parade. Ground Column. The Honor Guard of the Armed Forces of Belarus also participates in the parade and the end as part of a finale, instead  of the ground column. Mobile column. The legendary T-34 tank generally leads the procession of military vehicles and technologies. It is also responsible for setting the pace for the mechanized column at the parade. Its symbolism lies in the fact that it was the first vehicle to take part in the Liberation of Minsk. Since 2016, Dmitry Frolikov has been responsible for leading the column on this tank. Around 300 units are presented at the parade. List of parades. 1997. Celebrated the 6th anniversary of independence. It was the first independence day parade in the Republic of Belarus. Nearly 4,000  soldiers and officers marched through Independence Square, accompanied by 100 combat vehicles. 2001. The parade in 2001 celebrated a decade of independence. It was the last to be held on Independence Square. 2002. Celebrated the 11th anniversary of independence. It was the first parade that took place on October Square since 1984. It was also the first time the Honor Guard of the Armed Forces of Belarus performed an exhibition drill at an independence day parade. 2004. It celebrated the 13th anniversary of independence and the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus. It was held at its current venue  for the first time. It saw the participation of some 3,000 troops, an air show involving more than 40 civilian and military helicopters and aircraft (including a recently leased Boeing 737) as well as tractors and trucks carrying household appliances, refrigerators and television sets. President Lukashenko gave his first appearance in a military uniform, which drew comparisons to Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, whose military uniform was that of a Marshal of the Soviet Union. Among the dignitaries in attendance was Mayor of Moscow Yuri Luzhkov, Secretary-General of the Collective Security Treaty Organization Nikolai Bordyuzha, State Secretary of the Union  State Pavel Borodin, Chairman of the CIS Executive Committee Vladimir Rushailo, Nobel laureate Zhores Alferov, cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova. Kazakh Army General and former Defence Minister of Kazakhstan Sagadat Nurmagambetov, Ukrainian General of the Army and war veteran Ivan Herasymov as well as a representative delegation of French Normandie-Niemen Fighter Regiment veterans. 2009. Celebrated the 18th anniversary of independence and the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus. Nine UAZ-469 vehicles carrying war veterans took part in the parade. The parade included more than 40 military aircraft and 160 military vehicles. 2013. Celebrated the 22nd anniversary of independence. More than  20 military aircraft roared overhead, as well a 3,000 servicemen took part in the parade. Attending the parade were the Presidents of Venezuela and Laos, Nicolas Maduro and Choummaly Sayasone, respectively. 2014. Celebrated the 23rd anniversary of independence and the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus. For the first time the parade was held in the evening at nine o'clock in the evening. It was also the first to conduct the aviation portion the parade first before the infantry or mobile column passes through. Belarusian Soldiers dressed up as Soviet Partisans marched down the avenue during the parade. 2016 . Celebrated the 25th anniversary of independence. It was commanded by Sergei Potapenko and included about 6,000 people and 500 vehicles, featuring the planes such as the MI-24, Yak-130 combat aircraft, and MIG-29 in the flyover. According to the Interior Ministry, over 350,000 residents of the city either took part in the military parade, the artistic show that followed or observed the parade. It was the first independence day parade to use the Chinese made Hongqi L5 as the inspection vehicle since the car's introduction in May 2015. 2017. Celebrated the 26th anniversary of independence. The mechanized column included T-72B  combat tanks, BMP-2 infantry combat vehicles, BTR-80 armoured personnel carriers, and the Polonez Rocket Systems. On June 26, a tank that took part in that day's dress rehearsal crashed into a tree and knocked down a lamppost in Independence Avenue in Minsk. Belarusian tractors performed a ballet after the official parade. Breaking with a 5-year precedent, the military did not invite paratroopers from the Russian 76th Guards Air Assault Division to participate in the parade. Although no official reason was given, many have speculated that the division's involvement in the 2014 Annexation of Crimea by the Russian  Federation and the ongoing involvement in the War in Donbass may have been a factor. Russia was instead represented by the Commander of the Russian Airborne Troops, Colonel General Andrey Serdyukov. 2018. Celebrated the 27th anniversary of independence as well as the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Belarusian Army. The parade included female cadets for the first time. Troops from the Chinese PLA Honour Guard took part in the parade for the first time with Russian troops making a return appearance. Belarus's Bogomol and Centaur unmanned ground systems also made their debut appearance at the parade. In  commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Minsk Suvorov Military School, a section of cadets from the school took part in the parade alongside the school's Corps of Drums as part of a full contingent of junior cadets from specialized lyceums of the Emergencies Ministry, the MVD and the armed forces. 175 female cadets took part in the procession for the first time, including a cadet at the Military Academy who marched in the parade barefooted. 2019. Celebrated the 28th anniversary of independence as well as the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus. Unlike previous parades which may  have included 1 or 2 foreign contingents, this parade included the color guards and full formations from 8 different countries, including China and Azerbaijan. An elite armoured division from the Russian Ground Forces represented the Russian Armed Forces in the parade instead of the usual contingent from the Airborne Troops. In attendance was Azerbaijani defense minister Zakir Hasanov, Commander of the Russian Western Military District Viktor Astapov, and Uzbek army chief Pavel Ergashev. Keeping in tradition with the last jubilee parade in 2014, this parade took place in the evening time. For the first time, policewomen of the Ministry of  Internal Affairs took part in the parade. New and/or upgraded military hardware comprised about 70 percent of mechanized vehicles in the parade. Russian hardware including the 9K720 Iskander were on display. During his annual speech, President Lukashenko underscored his military policy by saying that the armed forces will find "new ways and methods of establishing relationships between various geopolitical forces". 2021. For the first time in 22 years, there will be no military parade on July 3.