American Troops in Red Square?

As a member of the last generation of Cold Warriors, this sight warms my heart: American troops marching through Red Square .

U.S. troops marched through Red Square for the first time in a Victory Day parade on Sunday as Russia celebrated the 65th anniversary of the end of World War II.

It was a scene cut from Russia’s Cold War nightmares: 71 Americans in dark blue dress uniforms carried the U.S. flag over the cobblestones, past the mausoleum of Vladimir Lenin and the towers of the Kremlin wall to salute Russian leaders.

French, British and Polish soldiers also took part in the parade in a tribute to the role the Allies played in what Russia called the Great Patriotic War. Under clear skies, the reviewing stands were packed with Russian officials, foreign dignitaries and hundreds of aging war veterans.

“In 1945, not only a military but also a great moral victory was achieved, a common victory,” President Dmitry Medvedev told the crowd. Soldiers of various countries marching Sunday in a single formation “is evidence of our common readiness to defend peace, not to allow the revision of the outcomes of war and new tragedies.”

The best part is that the American soldiers marching past Lenin’s tomb are there by invitation rather than after an invasion. Here’s a video clip of this historical event:

(Via: Outside the Beltway )