MOSCOW, May 5: Fighter jets circled over Red Square on Monday as Russia prepared a huge patriotic display around this week’s presidential inauguration, amid rising tension with pro-western neighbour Georgia.

MiG fighter jets together with strategic bomber planes thundered over the capital in a rehearsal for traditional World War II commemorations on Friday featuring a show of military hardware unprecedented for the post-Soviet era.

The military parade is part of the dramatic backdrop to president-elect Dmitry Medvedev’s inauguration on Wednesday, following traditional May Day parades last week.

President Vladimir Putin, who is to step down after eight years but will retain power in the prime minister’s post, said the pumped up display of military strength was not intended as a threat.

“For the first time in many years heavy military equipment will be used.

This is not sabre-rattling.... This is a demonstration of our growing defence capability,” Putin said at a government meeting. But as traffic police closed much of the city centre to rehearse for an influx of VIPs from around Russia, the popular daily Izvestia said this week’s events were clearly intended to send a message to the outside world.

It included a photograph of the 100-tonne Topol strategic missile system that will be used in the parade, for which the cobblestones on Red Square have been specially reinforced.

The parade “can be taken as a call for the rebirth of our army and its power and as a signal to our partners in Nato who are moving their bases towards Russian borders,” Izvestia said.

A number of papers referred to rising tensions with the West and the Nato military alliance’s expansion into former Soviet territory, as well as the latest spike in tension with neighbouring Georgia.

The war of nerves between Georgia, Russia and the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia stepped up a notch as Abkhaz officials on Sunday claimed to have downed two unmanned Georgian spy planes.

Russia issued a statement accusing Georgia of escalating tension, while Tbilisi categorically denied it had lost any drones but vowed it would continue flying the unmanned aircraft over Abhkazia.

Russia last week increased from 3,000 to 2,000 the size of its peacekeeping force in Abkhazia, seen by Georgia as giving de facto support to the separatists. The peacekeepers were shown on Russian television being greeted with flowers by local residents.

The United States on Sunday issued a call for restraint, White House spokesman Tony Fratto saying “we encourage everyone in the region to avoid actions that would increase tensions.” On Monday Georgia called for the United Nations to “immediately institute an investigation regarding the presence and utilisation of air defence systems by the Abkhaz separatists.” Political commentator Yevgeny Volk said Putin was keen that Friday’s parade should be a show of force to the West, while he also wanted to ensure a continued tough line by his successor.

“The present group is making Medvedev a hostage of their policies,” said Volk, who heads the Moscow office of the US Heritage Foundation, a research centre.

The business daily Vedomosti said that Wednesday’s inauguration would for the first time feature a speech by the outgoing president, another show of Putin’s determination to retain influence.

“Vladimir Putin will appear first and will be first to speak. The ceremony is intended to show that the country has a dual leadership,” said Vedomosti.

—AFP