Vladimir Putin defied thousands of anti-government protesters in Moscow demanding an end to his rule by riding his bike with the patriotic Night Wolves bikers.
The Russian president, who rode his Ural bike without a helmet on the tenth anniversary of group’s annual bike show in Sevastopol, Crimea, smiled at the crowds as his guards watched on from the sidelines on Saturday.
The defiant act comes as thousands continue to protest against the exclusion of opposition-minded candidates from taking part in an election for Moscow’s city legislature this September.
Vladimir Putin defied thousands of anti-government protesters in Moscow by joining the patriotic Night Wolves bikers for their annual bike show in Sevastopol, Crimea
The president rode his Ural bike, which came with a side car, on the the tenth anniversary of the biker group’s annual show
After arriving in Sevastopol, the president took a selfie with members of the annual bike show
Police rounded up scores of people after the demonstration in Moscow and at another rally in St Petersburg, and detained a leading opposition figure before it began.
But the response from the authorities was milder than the previous week when more than 1,000 protesters were detained, sometimes violently.
The White Counter monitoring group said up to 60,000 people had attended the Moscow rally, describing it as the biggest in Russia for eight years with a police turnout peaking at 20,000.
As the scenes unfolded in Moscow, the president was shown on state television in a leather jacket at a biker show organised by the Night Wolves motorcycle club.
Addressing participants of the show the president said: ‘I am very glad to see you all. It’s good that you continue this tradition, which began ten years ago.’
A month of demonstrations over elections for the Moscow city legislature have turned into the biggest sustained protest movement in Russia since 2011-2013, when protesters took to the streets against perceived electoral fraud.
As the president joined the bikers, thousands continued to protest against the exclusion of opposition-minded candidates from taking part in an election for Moscow’s city legislature
The president appeared in high spirits as he joined the bikers in his Ural bike on Saturday
Crowds at the rally in Moscow roared ‘down with the tsar!’ and waved Russian flags, demanding that opposition-minded candidates be permitted to run in a city election next month after they were not allowed onto the ballot.
‘The authorities have become brazen. It’s time to defend our rights,’ said Natalya Plokhova, a recruiting consultant.
Putin and the Kremlin have so far avoided commenting on the unrest over the Moscow city elections.
OVD-Info, a monitoring body, said 245 people were arrested at Saturday’s demonstration in Moscow and 80 in St Petersburg. A small number of other arrests took place in other cities, including Rostov-on-Don and Bryansk
The Moscow protest was held with official permission, unlike last week’s demonstration.
The president took a look at the bikes on display before the show in Crimea commenced
As the biking event was underway, police continued to round up scores of people at the demonstrations in Moscow
Putin joined the leader of the Night Wolvesd, Alexander Zaldostanov (left), to tell members of the bike group he was glad to see the tradition of the show continued
Afterwards, hundreds of mostly young people chanting ‘Putin is a thief’ began gathering near the presidential administration building, prompting masked riot police to ring off the area and detain dozens.
Authorities had earlier warned protesters not to continue protesting after the officially authorised event.
Ahead of the rally, police detained hunger-striking opposition activist Lyubov Sobol.
Masked men raided her office and the police said they had information she and other activists were plotting a ‘provocation’ at Saturday’s rally.
Commenting on her detention Ms Sobol wrote on Twitter: ‘I won’t make it to the protest. But you know what to do without me….Russia will be free!’
The president told participants: ‘I am very glad to see you all. It’s good that you continue this tradition, which began ten years ago’
While Putin and the Kremlin have not commented on the protests, a monitoring body, said 245 people were arrested at Saturday’s demonstration in Moscow
The Russian President Vladimir Putin was joined by the Acting Governor of Sevastopol Mikhail Razvozhayev (behind Putin) for the ride
Ms Sobol was released by police late on Saturday, she said in a video posted on Twitter, adding her detention was linked to a week-earlier rally.
Some pro-Kremlin politicians and officials have suggested that the West has helped orchestrate the protests. Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny and at least seven of his allies are in jail for breaking protest law.
Investigators have opened criminal proceedings against about a dozen people for what they say was mass civil unrest at earlier protests, a crime that carries a heavy jail term.
They have also opened a money-laundering investigation into Navalny’s anti-corruption foundation.
Putin appeared at ease as he joined the patriotic biker group while his guards looked on from the sidelines
Meanwhile, protesters in the Russian capital continue to voice their dismay over the exclusion of opposition-minded candidates from taking part in a September election
Alongside the throngs of protesters chanting ‘freedom for political prisoners’ and ‘Russia will be free’, several Russian musicians with youth followings, including rapper Face and electronic band Ic3peak. also performed at the rally despite city authorities saying that would be banned.
The focus of protesters’ anger is a prohibition on a slew of opposition-minded candidates, some of whom are allies of Navalny, from taking part in a September election for Moscow’s city legislature. That vote is seen as a dry run for a national parliamentary election in 2021.
Authorities say the opposition candidates failed to collect enough genuine signatures to register. The excluded candidates say that is a lie and insist on taking part in a contest they believe they could win.
The president holds a hat up to the crowds as he addresses participants at the bike show in Crimea
Putin led the biker group through the region as protests continued in the Russian capital