At least 30 suspected members of a neo-Nazi group were detained in recent raids in central Russia, local media reported yesterday, ahead of the anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe.

The group, believed to have operated in the Moscow, Vladimir and Ryazan regions, has been implicated in attacks on migrant workers, the Interfax news agency reported, citing an undisclosed source. Russian television network REN TV showed several suspects being detained in a raid on a residence. Weapons, extremist literature and Nazi symbols were seized in the searches, Interfax reported. This week marks the 74th anniversary of the capitulation of Nazi Germany, which ended World War II in Europe. The event, which Russia celebrates tomorrow, remains a broad source of national pride in the country. Russia must continue to combat attempts to "heroize Nazism," a senior Foreign Ministry official, Grigory Lukyantsev, said in comments carried by state news agency TASS in the run-up to Victory Day. Russia opposes "any attempt to falsify history, revise the results of the Second World War, heroize Nazism, [and] belittle or deny the feat of those who achieved this great victory," Lukyantsev said.