In particular, the "Immortal Regiment" marches, during which thousands of Russians march across the country holding portraits of their relatives who took part in World War II, have been canceled, an official said Tuesday.

Citing threats to public safety linked to the conflict in Ukraine and a recent attack near Moscow, "the organizing committee of the 'Immortal Regiment of Russia' has decided not to hold the procession... in person," the group's co-chair Elena Tsunaeva was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.

Instead, it is proposing that portraits of veterans be displayed on public transport, planes and ships, or that "Galleries of Memory" be set up in public spaces featuring such portraits.

The "Immortal Regiment" marches were also canceled in May 2023.

Education Minister Sergei Kravtsov was quoted by Interfax as saying that schools would nevertheless hold commemorative events, and that they were being asked to invite both World War II veterans and participants in the conflict in Ukraine, which Moscow casts as a fight against neo-Nazis.

The traditional military parade on Red Square in Moscow will go ahead, while other Russian cities have canceled their own such events.

In recent months, dozens of Ukrainian drone attacks have hit Russia. Assassinations and assassination attempts have also targeted several pro-Kremlin figures, and the Russian security services regularly claim to have foiled attacks or sabotage.

On Tuesday, the Russian authorities arrested the main suspect in an alleged plot to carry out a terrorist attack with the help of alleged Ukrainian nationalists in the city of Bryansk, near the borders with Ukraine and Belarus.

The FSB security service said that the alleged mastermind of the plot "adhered to Ukrainian nationalist ideology and acted on the instructions of representatives of a terrorist organization banned in Russia."

A suicide bombing at a concert hall near Moscow on August 22 killed 144 people and wounded hundreds more.

The Russian authorities have said the bombing was carried out by Islamists, but have not mentioned a claim of responsibility by the Islamic State group, instead alleging a link to Ukraine without providing any concrete evidence.

Since coming to power, Vladimir Putin has made the celebration of the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany, achieved at the cost of more than 25 million Soviet lives, a cornerstone of his patriotic rhetoric.

Critics say Putin uses history to justify his policies and bolster his legitimacy, casting himself as the heir to Soviet power while downplaying the USSR's crimes and its 1939 pact with Hitler.

Read Also: Nagorno-Karabakh: Azerbaijan in control after Russia withdraws forces (Portuguese version)