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A spate of attacks and acts in recent days “nasty job” Russia is raising fears that May 9 military celebrations, essential to the Kremlin, could be ruined amid the conflict in Ukraine.

In recent days, a series of spectacular incidents have served as a reminder that Russia is vulnerable to enemy attacks, even hundreds of kilometers from the Ukrainian front. Monday and Tuesday, “Explosive Devices” Two freight trains derailed near Ukraine’s border, the first such incident in Russia since the offensive against Kyiv began on February 24, 2022; They evoke memory “Train War” World War II.

On Monday, a power line near a village south of St. Petersburg, far from Ukraine, was damaged by an explosive device, and the Russian security services, the FSB, opened an investigation into the sabotage. Overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, a fire broke out at a fuel depot in a Russian village near annexed Crimea. In the morning, the FSB announced that it had dismantled the Ukrainian network “terrorist” on the peninsula. Last weekend, an oil depot in Crimea was hit by a drone strike, while a Russian village in the border region of Bryansk was bombed, killing four people.

“The Kyiv regime, which is behind many of these attacks and bombings, plans to continue down this path.”Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Tuesday that Russian security services were doing so. “necessary” To protect people. While Ukraine has not claimed any of these attacks, as usual, they are escalating as Kyiv says it has completed preparations for a major spring offensive that has been announced for weeks.

In this context, many Russian cities have canceled celebrations traditionally organized on May 9 for Victory Day, marking the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945. For now, the main event of the day, the big military parade on Red Square in Moscow, is being maintained. The challenge for the authorities is to ensure that it goes smoothly. “Events [pendant ces manifestations] They are undesirable because they disrupt the achievement of campaign objectives and reduce the sense of security”Andriy Kolesnikov, Agence France-Presse of the Carnegie Center for Analysis said.

These military parades, usually attended by thousands of spectators as a family, are one of the main annual gatherings of Vladimir Putin’s regime. Since coming to power, he instituted a Victory Cult in 1945 to stoke patriotic sentiments and boost his legitimacy by presenting himself as the heir to Soviet power. “The only ‘glue’ that unites the nationAndrei Kolesnikov believes. “This celebration is doubly important now, because it is so important for Putin to insert the simple but insane idea of ​​a “special operation” into the collective consciousness. [en Ukraine] is an extension He judges the war against Adolf Hitler. The Russian government actually stops short of drawing a parallel between “The Great Patriotic War” and claiming to be attacking Ukraine “Neo-Nazis” supported by Westerners.