The parade dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the Republic of South Ossetia is taking place on the central square of Tskhinval. The parade is being inspected by the Defense Minister of the Republic, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Gasseev, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Major General Viktor Fedorov, is in command of the parade.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Anatoly Bibilov addressed the residents of the Republic with words of congratulations: “Dear fellow citizens, dear guests of the Republic!
Comrades soldiers, sergeants and warrant officers! Comrades officers and generals! Today for all our people is a special, significant and solemn historical date – today we are celebrating the 30th anniversary of the proclamation of the Republic of South Ossetia. "
The head of state has reminded that the South Ossetian Autonomous Region was transformed into the Republic of South Ossetia by the resolution and Declaration of State Sovereignty adopted on September 20, 1990 by the session of the Regional Council of People's Deputies.
"This decision was made in a situation of direct and obvious threat to the national future, following the actions of the Georgian authorities aimed at eliminating the South Ossetian autonomy," Anatoly Bibilov said.
According to him, the goals of the nationalists were the establishment of an ethnocratic regime, the suppression of the non-Georgian population, the abolition of autonomies and the secession of Georgia from the USSR.
"For South Ossetia, this meant the threat of a repetition of the genocide of 1920. In the situation of the collapse of the USSR and the treacherous inaction of the allied leadership, we had to defend ourselves on our own, creating our own statehood as the only way to protect ourselves from the constant threat from Georgia and ensure the observance of our rights," he noted.
Bibilov has noted that over the years, each new regime in Georgia sent its troops against South Ossetia, "this was in 1989-1992, in 2004 and in 2008."
The President has stressed that throughout all the heroic years of the struggle for freedom and the establishment of the statehood of South Ossetia, the South Ossetian people have shown will, steadfastness and dedication, have shown examples of outstanding courage and heroism.
"At the same time, South Ossetia would have been immeasurably more difficult without the support of friends. We highly appreciate the solidarity and support of our friends - the Republic of Abkhazia and the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, with whom we have forever been tied by unity in striving for freedom, joint struggle and common historical destinies.
Decisive for us was the fraternal assistance of the Russian Federation, which was invariably coming to the rescue at the moment of mortal danger, when the question of whether or not to be South Ossetia was being decided, "the President said.
Anatoly Bibilov, on behalf of all the people of South Ossetia, has expressed the greatest gratitude to the people of Russia and the leadership of the Russian Federation, headed by Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, for everything that Russia has done and continues to do for South Ossetia.
He has noted that the Republic Day is a holiday for all who created and strengthened the statehood, who were fighting and working for a peaceful and dignified future of South Ossetia. This is a holiday of memory and glory of the military community. This is a holiday for all generations of the Ossetian people and connects the heroic past of the country with its wonderful future.
"Now the servicemen of the Republic of South Ossetia, parade crews of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Abkhazia will march through the main square of Tskhinval. This joint parade march is a tribute to the common heroic memory of all those who were fighting for the freedom of South Ossetia, a symbol of the military community and the indestructible brotherhood of our peoples," - said the head of state.
The national anthem was played, which was performed by the combined orchestra of the South Ossetian and Russian military.
At these minutes, parade crews of the Defense Ministry, Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Border Guard Service of the KGB, Ministry of Emergency Situations, the Cadet School, Ministry of Justice are marching across the square; for several years in a row, foot columns adorn the women's parade crews of power structures, which from the very first parade, took a high bar in drill training.
For the first time on the invitation of the Acting Defense Minister of South Ossetia Ibragim Gasseev, a banner group and a ceremonial crew of cadets of the Sukhum Higher Combined Arms Command School of the Ministry of Defense of Abkhazia are taking part in the parade. Traditionally, servicemen of the Border Directorate of the FSB of the Russian Federation and the 4th Guards Military Base of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation are also participating in the parade.
In total - 19 ceremonial crews and 6 banner groups are taking part in the parade.
Servicemen of the Ministry of Defense at the parade will demonstrate a demonstration performance. A mechanized column consisting of equipment from the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the 4 military bases will pass through the square.
A solemn meeting of the public will also be held in Tskhinval on Sunday. The militia officers were transferred to an enhanced mode of working.
Guests arrived in the Republic for the celebration, including State Duma deputy Kazbek Taisayev, a delegation from North Ossetia headed by the Chairman of the North Ossetian-Alanian Parliament Alexei Machnev, as well as representatives of the DPR, LPR, Abkhazia.
The head of state is receiving congratulations from the heads of friendly countries, diasporas, regions of the Russian Federation.
On the occasion of the holidays, four days off were announced in the Republic from September 19 to 22.
