US President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he will display military capabilities, including M1 Abrams tanks, flyovers by fighter jets and other weapons, in the country's annual Fourth of July celebrations in Washington.
According to Reuters, extended fireworks display and flyovers by Air Force One, the custom Boeing 747 used by US presidents, and the US Navy's Blue Angels jet squadron will be the event's highlights.
The American independence celebrations, that will take place on Thursday, will not parade down Pennsylvania Avenue due to the risk of possible damages caused by the tanks on city roads.
"You've got to be pretty careful with the tanks because the roads have a tendency not to like to carry heavy tanks so we have to put them in certain areas but we have the brand new Sherman tanks and we have the brand new Abrams tanks," Trump said in a address from the oval office.
While the M1A1 Abrams is the current official US military battle tanks, the Sherman tanks have been out of service since the 1950s and were widely known for its use by the US during the second world war.
Along with the military display, Trump's 'Salute to America' speech at the Lincoln Memorial will be another new element in the US Independence day celebration. "I'm going to say a few words, and we're going to have planes going overhead," Trump said, "And we're going to have tanks stationed outside."
"Salute to America will honour each of the nation's five service branches with music, military demonstrations, flyovers and much more. Participants include the Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, the U.S. Army Band ("Pershing's Own"), the Armed Forces Chorus, the United States Marine Corps Silent Drill Team, and many others," said a statement by the Department of Interior.
However, the local officials and lawmakers have raised concern over Trump's political speech as he had announced his re-election campaign in June. The officials doubt that the speech can the traditional nonpartisan values of the American independence celebration.
The Fourth of July or July 4 celebrations is a federal holiday that celebrates the Declaration of Independence of the US from the British on July 4, 1776.
