
By Agence France-Presse
Tens of thousands took to the streets of Moscow Saturday for rival rallies opposing and supporting Russian strongman Vladimir Putin’s political domination one month ahead of presidential polls.
Police said between 87,000 and 90,000 turned up for the pro-Putin rally in the west of the capital and put the number of protesters at the anti-Putin march to a square overlooking the Kremlin at around 23,000.
The rally by the anti-Putin movement — its third since disputed December 4 parliamentary polls — is seen as a crucial test of whether activists can keep their momentum to pose a real challenge to the Russian strongman.