Authorities in St. Petersburg have canceled Russia’s main naval parade this year due to security concerns, the local news outlet Fontanka reported Wednesday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.
The annual Navy Day parade takes place in St. Petersburg, the home base of Russia’s Baltic Fleet, on the last Sunday of July. Smaller parades are held in the ports of Vladivostok and Kaliningrad.
This year’s event, originally scheduled for July 27, has been downsized and will now feature a wreath-laying ceremony and public festivities on Palace Square, sources told Fontanka.
Preparations for the parade were halted before any rehearsals could begin, it added.
There was no immediate confirmation of the cancellations from city authorities.
The St. Petersburg Navy Day parade in 2024 took place on July 28, though part of the event planned in the nearby port city of Kronstadt was canceled, also due to security concerns.
At the time, news outlets reported that Russian security services had warned of a likely attack on naval vessels involved in the parade.
The New York Times had reported that then-U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held two phone calls with Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, after Russian intelligence warned of possible covert Ukrainian operations around the planned parade.
According to the report, the warning was serious enough that Austin contacted Ukrainian officials to urge them not to carry out any potential attacks.
The annual Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg was first held in 2017.
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