Russia Downscales New Year's Celebrations to Pay for Ukraine War

Several regional leaders in Russia have announced plans to cut back on their local New Year's celebrations and instead send the money to support Moscow's war against Ukraine.

According to a report from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, many regions are choosing to rely on decorations already in the municipality's possession to ring in the new year on December 31. Some leaders have also said that they refuse to launch fireworks or host mass celebrations in light of the Russia-Ukraine war.

A similar decision was made by several Russian cities last year, according to Business Insider, despite Russian Deputy Defense Minister Viktor Goremykin discouraging citizens ahead of the 2022 holiday season from canceling festivities. Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin held a toned-down New Year's Eve celebration in Russia's capital last December, which included avoiding fireworks and "large street concerts."

This year, Novorossiysk Mayor Andrei Kravchenko is following a similar model, telling Radio Liberty that fireworks displays are a "minute but expensive" pleasure and that the money would instead be used to purchase equipment for Russian soldiers on the front lines.

Sochi Mayor Alexey Kopaygorodsky also ordered that New Year's fireworks shows be canceled, and that the saved money would be used for military needs. Kopaygorodsky encouraged Sochi's citizens to follow suit, writing on his Telegram Channel, "This will be the best gift for our fellow countrymen on the front line of a special military operation and their families."

Similar decisions to scale back celebrations were made by Veniamin Kondratyev, governor of the Krasnodar region, as well as by authorities in the cities of Nalchik and Vladikavkaz, according to Radio Liberty. Russian newspaper Vestnik Kavkaza reported that Kondratyev also canceled holiday celebrations last year.

"Let's wait until the special operation is completed, our soldiers will return, and then with all our hearts we will celebrate the new year as we are used to," the Krasnodar governor said, according to Radio Liberty. "And now let's take care of our colleagues from law enforcement agencies and the military."

Newsweek reached out to the Russian Defense Ministry via email for comment.

The canceled and scaled-back celebrations come as public support for Russia's war in Ukraine is sinking to an all-time low. According to a poll by research group Chronicles that was conducted in October, core support for Russian President Vladimir Putin's war was around 12 percent among citizens.

Most respondents also indicated that financial concerns were the main reason for their dissatisfaction with the war. Reuters reported in late November that Putin approved a budget plan for 2024 that would set military spending at about 30 percent of the Kremlin's fiscal expenditures. Russian citizens also indicated in Chronicles' survey that they were dealing with a decrease in their household income.

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