Washington (AFP) – The United States will stage a military parade on June 14 to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the US Army, the White House said Friday. The event also coincides with President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday. Trump “will honor American Veterans, active-duty servicemembers, and military history with a military parade!” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly wrote on X.
Kelly included a link to a Fox News article that stated the parade will feature US troops, students from the country’s military academies, as well as reenactors and equipment from past conflicts ranging from the Revolutionary War to the Global War on Terror. The plan to hold a display of American military strength in the streets of the nation’s capital was reported by the Washington City Paper last month, which mentioned that the parade could stretch four miles (six kilometers) from the Pentagon to the White House.
Trump had previously floated the idea of a military parade in Washington during his first term after attending a Bastille Day parade in France. However, this plan never materialized when the Pentagon estimated it could cost $92 million, and concerns were raised that tanks and other heavy military vehicles would damage the city’s streets. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser expressed similar concerns last month when asked by reporters about the plans for the parade. “Military tanks on our streets would not be good,” Bowser said. “If military tanks were used, they should be accompanied with many millions of dollars to repair the roads.”
The last major US military parade in Washington was held in 1991 to celebrate the end of the Gulf War. Trump has had a contradictory relationship with US forces, lauding their power but also claiming they were depleted and in need of rebuilding. He has, at times, clashed with military brass during his 2016-2020 term in office and reportedly referred to fallen troops as “losers” and “suckers” — something he denied.
During his second term, Trump has overseen a purge of top officers, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles “CQ” Brown, whom he fired without explanation in February. Other senior officers dismissed this year include the heads of the Navy and Coast Guard, the general who headed the National Security Agency, the vice chief of staff of the Air Force, a Navy admiral assigned to NATO, and three top military lawyers.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has insisted that the president is simply choosing the leaders he wants, but Democratic lawmakers have raised concerns about the potential politicization of the traditionally neutral US military.
© 2024 AFP
