Russia election protest urged by Ilya Yashin

Exiled Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin has urged Russians who oppose the war in Ukraine to vote against President Vladimir Putin's ruling United Russia party at noon on September 20.

The protest campaign, called “noon for peace,” asks anti-war Russians worldwide to go to polling stations at the same time during this month's legislative elections.

“If people come to vote against United Russia at the same time and line up in queues, then everyone will see just how many of us there really are,” Yashin told AFP in Helsinki, where he met exiled supporters.

Yashin said he did not consider the ballot a real election. Russia tightly controls elections, and rights groups have previously said Russian votes have been marred by fraud, coercion and the banning of genuine opposition.

Last month, Russia's Supreme Court blocked Yabloko, described in the supplied material as the only anti-war party, from standing in the September vote.

Yashin leads Peaceful Russia, a party founded in Berlin in June that aims to unite Russia's divided opposition groups, call for an end to the invasion of Ukraine and advocate for rights. The party is not otherwise directly involved in the elections.

Yashin, a former Moscow city lawmaker and longtime Putin opponent, was jailed in 2022 after criticising Russia's invasion of Ukraine. He was released two years later as part of a major prisoner swap with the West.

He said Peaceful Russia was preparing for a future political struggle and that he would return to Russia when a “window of opportunity” opened.

Yashin also warned that Russia could escalate after the vote and predicted Putin would mobilise 300,000 to 500,000 men for the army to enable a larger offensive next year. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied plans for another call-up.

Putin last ordered a partial mobilisation in 2022, calling up around 300,000 extra fighters. Ukraine has also warned that Russia is likely to mobilise more troops after the September vote.