Blast from the past

This kind of military display hasn't been seen on Red Square since before the fall of the Soviet Union. Russia has been spending more and more on their military in recent years, and Putin has done much to reverse freedoms gained over the past decade. The new president, Dmitry Medvedev (shown above in his new role of marionette) is continuing Putin's policies.

This is the Soviet-style saber-rattling that used to be aimed at the U.S., but it appears that this display of nuclear warheads and tanks is directed at next-door neighbor Georgia, where tensions have been increasing steadily over the separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Russia has been increasing troop numbers along the border and war could be coming soon in Abkhazia unless one side or the other backs down.

Although most Americans' attention is on the middle east, this area bears watching as events unfold.