The authorities of several regions of Russia are tightening their belts to save money and send money to the front: they canceled New Year’s fireworks and did not buy Christmas tree decorations, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reports, The Kyiv Independent notes.

Several Russian officials have promised to cut spending on traditional holidays to buy military equipment needed by Russian troops on the front lines in Ukraine.

The mayor of Sochi, Oleksiy Kopaigorodskyi, said that the funds allocated for fireworks will be redirected to the Russian military. He also appealed to local businessmen and residents to do the same.

“This will be the best gift for our compatriots at the front,” said Kopaigorodskyi.

There will be no fireworks in Novorossiysk, and the funds usually allocated for New Year’s Eve will be used to purchase equipment for the front.

In the mountain town of Nalchik this year new snow holiday decorations will be purchased. Local authorities will reuse those from previous years.

The Governor of the Krasnodar Territory, Veniamin Kondratiev, reminded of the ban on fireworks introduced in the region after the start of the war in Ukraine, and urged residents to refrain from launching them.

“Let’s wait until the special operation ends, our fighters return, and then we will welcome the New Year from the heart, as it was before. And now let’s save our colleagues from the law enforcement agencies and the army,” Kondratiev said, RIA Novosti quotes.

Similar plans were implemented throughout Russia.

And it’s no wonder that in the first year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, many Russian cities canceled New Year’s celebrations to redirect money to the army, Business Insider reports. In Moscow and St. Petersburg, officials canceled holiday fireworks.

In 2024, Russia plans to spend about a third of its budget on the army.