- Category
- War in Ukraine
Russia Scraps Flagship Navy Parade in St. Petersburg for Second Year Running
Prefer U24 Media on Google
- Authors
![Photo of Ivan Khomenko]( "Photo of Ivan Khomenko")
Russia is not expected to hold its annual Main Naval Parade in St. Petersburg in 2026, marking the second consecutive year the event has been canceled.
We bring you stories from the ground. Your support keeps our team in the field.
According to Russian outlet Fontanka on June 15, Russia is not expected to hold its annual Navy Day parade in St. Petersburg this year.
Citing sources in the Russian Defense Ministry and Navy command, the outlet reported that no presidential decree authorizing the event has been issued as of mid-June, while preparations that would normally already be underway have yet to begin.
Russian fleets have also reportedly received no orders to deploy ships or personnel to St. Petersburg for the parade.
According to Fontanka, military officials said no instructions regarding the event had been received from senior leadership. One source quoted by the outlet commented, “You understand yourselves, now is not the time.”
The Main Naval Parade has traditionally been held in St. Petersburg and nearby Kronstadt on the last Sunday of July to mark Russia’s Navy Day. Since its launch in 2017, the event has featured warships from multiple fleets, naval aviation displays, and an address by Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
-33d60a600c140397f79be053673c2119.png)
Preparations for the 2025 parade initially began before the event was ultimately canceled several weeks ahead of schedule. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov later said the decision had been made for security reasons. In 2024, authorities also reduced the scale of the celebrations, canceling the Kronstadt portion of the parade.
The reported cancellation comes weeks after Ukrainian drone strikes targeted military facilities in and around St. Petersburg. On June 3, Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces (SBS) and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) reported striking the Russian Navy’s Kronstadt naval base and damaging the Project 20380 corvette Boykiy, a missile-armed warship assigned to Russia’s Baltic Fleet.
Discuss this article:
-9a7b3a98ed5c506e0b77a6663f5727c5.png)
-cb66b5fa22fbaa8a626c1fd56dd69139.jpg "DRAGON air defense system at the Eurosatory defense exhibition in Paris, June 15, 2026.")
