December 30, 2018
Why American Spies Loved Russian Military Parades
President Trump loves a military parade. And so would Russian spies if Trump got his way.
by Michael Peck
President Donald Trump loves a military parade. And so would Russian spies if Trump got his way.
In fact, American spies gleaned lots of valuable information from watching Soviet military parades during the Cold War. During those massive festivals of firepower such as the May Day march, Russia displayed its latest hardware as troops marched in impeccable formation past Soviet dignitaries, while Western analysts zealously tried to determine Kremlin politics by who sat where in the reviewing stands.
The theatrics were intended to impress the world with Soviet military might and show the impoverished Soviet public where their rubles were going. But for Western intelligence, they were a godsend. The Soviet Union was a tough place for spies to do their work. Surveillance was everywhere, and foreign visitors were watched closely. As for technology, spy planes like the U-2 could be shot down, while spy satellites had their own limitations.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/why-american-spies-loved-russian-military-parades-40147
