Anti-war opposition leader Boris Nadezhdin flees Russia for Paris

Boris Nadezhdin, a prominent Russian opposition leader who campaigned on an anti-war platform, has left Russia and is currently in Paris. In a video message posted with the Eiffel Tower in the background, Nadezhdin stated, "I am alive and free, but unfortunately not in Russia."

Nadezhdin had intended to challenge President Vladimir Putin in the recent presidential elections, promising to end the Russian invasion of Ukraine. His stance garnered significant support, with tens of thousands of citizens signing declarations to support his candidacy. However, the Kremlin rejected his application, citing "irregularities" in the signature lists.

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I am alive and free, but unfortunately not in Russia.

He later attempted to run in the parliamentary elections for the Duma, but his candidacy was again blocked. Russian authorities accused him of using an "extremist symbol" – an image of the late opposition figure Aleksey Navalny – in one of his videos. Nadezhdin alleges that these actions are part of a concerted effort by the Russian authorities to silence him and permanently remove him from the political landscape.

Nadezhdin is not the first critic of the Putin regime to flee the country. Many prominent opposition figures have gone into exile abroad or have been imprisoned, like Navalny, who died in a Russian penal colony in February 2024. Nadezhdin has vowed to return with new political plans but stressed the need for careful consideration on how to proceed.

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But now we must first think about how we can move forward.