Russian opposition holds anti-war protest in Berlin in show of unity

Russia’s disparate and fragmented political opposition in exile gathered in Berlin on Sunday to demand the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine, the release of all political prisoners and the indictment of Vladimir Putin for war crimes.

The anti-war rally, which was organised by Russian opposition leaders Vladimir Kara-Murza, Yulia Navalnaya and Ilya Yashin, set off from Potsdamer Platz and ended outside the Russian Embassy on Unter den Linden, and was attended by an overwhelmingly Russian crowd carrying Ukrainian flags, the alternative Russian blue and white flag, as well as the country’s official tricolour. 

Kara-Murza, Navalnaya and Yashin all addressed the crowd briefly, while similar rallies were also held in other cities around the world including in Prague, San Francisco, Vilnius, Tokyo, Yerevan, Lisbon and Auckland.

On Friday, Yashin told Novaya Europe why he believed it was necessary for Russian opponents of the war living in exile to come out and make themselves heard at the march, despite the infighting that has dogged the Russian opposition for years and a growing sense of apathy.

“This is an act of solidarity with all political prisoners in Russia,” Yashin said, adding that volunteers would “inform political prisoners that the event is happening, that they’re raising awareness about them, showing pictures of them, and that the opposition is coming together. I can say from experience that that’s exactly what I wanted to hear when I was in prison.”