The war in Ukraine has prompted officials across Russia to scale back annual Victory Day celebrations, the country’s most important national holiday, with more than 20 cities suspending military parades and organizer calling for a popular national march to honor veterans.
Security concerns were often cited for the quick cancellation of Tuesday’s events, but some analysts suggested the concern was related to fears about domestic unrest.
It’s an unprecedented move in a country where parades, commemorating the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, have become a signature event for President Vladimir V. Putin.
Over the years, he has made the day not only a celebration of a historic victory but also of Russia’s current need to fend off Western forces that he says are still trying to destroy it. Recently, he tried to place Ukraine in that narrative, falsely characterizing it as a Nazi skepticism.
The country’s biggest parade, outside the Kremlin in Red Square, is still expected to be the usual display of raw military might, with a line of carefully choreographed soldiers marching between weapons. from vintage tanks to intercontinental ballistic missiles. Mr. Putin is also scheduled to address the nation.
But outside of Moscow, a recent drone attack against military targets or infrastructure in cities such as Sevastopol in Crimea, the home port of the Black Sea fleet, as well as other attack in the border regions of Ukraine, giving officials to stop. Even the Kremlin is no longer immune, with two drones destroyed in Mr. Putin’s office last week.
Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, put his country’s own claim on the holiday, with a speech on Monday that drew a parallel between World War II and the current war against invaders. in Russia. From now on, he said, May 9 will be called Europe Day, commemorating the “uniting of all Europeans who destroyed Nazism and defeated rusism,” a Ukrainian term that combines “Russian” and “fascism. “
“We fought then and we fight now so that no one can enslave other countries and destroy other countries,” he said.
In Russia, various regional governors cited security concerns in canceling Victory Day events. They usually don’t go into detail, but in Belgorod, a region on the Ukrainian border, the governor suggested that slow-moving military vehicles and marching soldiers could make for inviting targets.
“There is no parade in order not to provoke the enemy with a lot of equipment and soldiers crowded in the center of Belgorod,” said the governor, Vyacheslav Gladkov. “The refusal to hold the parade is related to the safety of the residents of the region.”
Many areas have banned drone flights during the events, and the Readovka news outlet on Telegram reported that National Guard units were issued anti-drone weapons.
Igor Artamonov, the governor of the Lipetsk region, which is also close to Ukraine, said that his decision should not be misunderstood.
“We are not afraid, we are not raising our hands,” he wrote on Telegram. “No neo-Nazi scum can spoil the great Victory Day. But we also have no right to put people in danger. It is clear to everyone that the parades are held in strictly defined squares at strictly defined times.”
The cancellation of the nationwide “Immortal Regiment” march, when ordinary Russians take to the streets to display portraits of their veteran ancestors, is perhaps the most striking change. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri S. Peskov said the march was canceled as a “precaution” against possible attacks.
Some governors said they did not want to gather large numbers of people in the midst of war. But some analysts suggest the Kremlin may be nervous that putting more Russians on the streets at such an uncomfortable time could lead to civil unrest, even with Russia’s wartime laws against protests. .
It could be easier, analysts say, if thousands of people show up with photos of the latest war dead, revealing the extent of a toll the government is trying to hide. Some pictures of soldiers killed in Ukraine were carried during last year’s celebrations, but the numbers were much smaller then, just two months into the conflict.
“People don’t go out with photos of their great-grandparents,” wrote Elvira Vikhareva, a political activist, on Facebook. “People come out with pictures of their fathers, sons and brothers. The regime will not be ‘immortal,’ but rather mortal, and the scale will be visible.
Whatever the reason, Russian officials are trying to develop an alternative, suggesting that people upload photos to a special website or put photos of their veteran ancestors on their vehicles. and apartment window.
Some of the local leaders far from Ukraine said they canceled their solidarity parades in the frontline regions. In the Pskov region, home to a famous paratrooper division that was destroyed in the fighting and implicated in potential war crimes, Governor Mikhail Vedernikov said the sound of fireworks was disturbing to recovering soldiers and that the money is better spent on their needs.
Some regions plan to continue the festivities, but on a smaller scale. In St. Petersburg, no air force flyover, for example.
Some pro-war bloggers lamented that the men and equipment traditionally displayed in mass parades were more useful at the front, supporting the chaotic war effort.
Governor Vedernikov suggested a twist, saying, “We don’t need to celebrate the victory, but do everything possible to bring it closer.”
Milana Mazaeva, Alina Lobzina and Shashank Bengali contributed to the report.
