British intelligence explains cancelation of Immortal Regiment events in Russia
That’s according to the British Defense Ministry, referring to the country’s intelligence, Ukrinform reports.
The war update notes that on April 18, Russian state media announced the cancellation of this year’s events commemorating the so-called "Immortal Regiment" citing "security" reasons.
"In reality, the authorities were highly likely concerned that the participants would highlight the scope of recent Russian losses," the report said.
This happened after the leader of the Wagner terrorist group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, publicly expressed doubts about whether there are actually "Nazis" in Ukraine, thus going against Russia’s justification for the war.
At the same time, the Russian authorities have continued their attempts to unify the Russian public around polarizing myths about the 1940s.
In particular, on April 12, state news agency RIA Novosti reported "unique" documents from FSB archives, implicating the Nazis in the murder of 22,000 Polish nationals in the Katyn Massacre of 1940.
“In reality, FSB’s predecessor agency, the NKVD, was responsible,” the report reads. “Russia’s state Duma officially condemned Joseph Stalin or ordering the killings in 2010.”
As Ukrinform reported earlier, in Russia’s Kursk and Belgorod, due to security reasons, May 9 victory parades have been canceled.