Will Nadezhdin be accepted as a candidate for the Russian presidential election?

In preparation for Russia's presidential election to be held in March, former member of the House of Representatives Nadezhdin, who is critical of President Putin, completed the formalities on the 31st, including submitting the necessary voter signatures for candidacy.

All eyes are on whether he will become a candidate to challenge Mr. Putin, and the focus will now be on whether his candidacy will be approved by the government.

In the Russian presidential election to be held in March, four people, including President Putin, have already completed the necessary procedures, including submitting voter signatures, and their candidacy has already been approved.

On the 31st, President Putin attended a gathering of campaign executives and supporters and said, ``I would like to thank you for your cooperation over the years.Russia is going through a difficult and important period.''He then announced his participation in the invasion of Ukraine. He praised the soldiers and reiterated his commitment to continue the invasion.

Meanwhile, former member of the State Duma Boris Nadezhdin, who has criticized President Putin, including the military invasion, visited the Central Election Commission in Moscow on the 31st, the deadline for submitting signatures, and sent over 100,000 voters. I have completed the necessary procedures such as submitting my signature.

Mr. Nadezhdin has been attracting attention as a candidate to challenge Mr. Putin, and many media visited the election commission venue to interview him.

"I would like to thank the many people who signed the petition on my behalf in various parts of Russia," Nadezhdin told reporters.

In the presidential election, Putin is expected to win his fifth term in total.

There is a possibility that the Election Commission may point out that there were procedural deficiencies on Mr. Nadejdin's side, and the focus will now be on whether his candidacy will be approved by the government.

Former lawmaker Nadezhdin says military invasion was a 'fatal mistake'

In an exclusive interview with NHK, former member of the House of Representatives Nadezhdin said that the military invasion of Ukraine was a ``fatal mistake'' and announced his intention to oppose Mr. Putin as a platform for voters who opposed the invasion. .

Boris Nadezhdin, who served as a member of the Russian Duma for four years starting in 1999, served as an advisor to former First Deputy Prime Minister Nemtsov, an opposition leader who was shot and killed by someone for criticizing the Putin administration. .

Mr. Nadezhdin, who has been critical of President Putin, announced his candidacy for the presidential election to be held in March in December last year as a candidate for the center-right party.

In late January, Nadezhdin gave an exclusive interview to NHK regarding the military invasion of Ukraine, saying, ``Putin made many mistakes, but the decision to launch a special military operation was a fatal mistake. "People think that they support special military operations, but that's not the case at all. Nobody wants to be called into the military, nobody wants to put their lives at risk, and nobody wants their livelihoods to be destroyed." Ta.

He added, ``If I become president, on my first day I will release political prisoners and propose to the Ukrainian leadership that negotiations begin.Firstly, negotiations to halt military action, and more broadly, peace negotiations.I support Ukraine.'' "We also have to negotiate with the United States and European countries."

Mr. Nadezhdin also said that he had known and supported Mr. Putin in the 1990s before he became president, and added, ``He was a very smart person at the time, but the same person has been in power for a long time.'' "You will not be able to understand what is happening in your country and in the world. At the beginning of the invasion, the Ukrainian people did not resist and thought that the Russian army would be welcomed as liberators." Critics criticized the invasion as a result of Putin's long-term regime lasting more than 20 years.

"I'm seeing an incredible amount of support for me," he said, adding, "Russian people have been frightened and afraid to express their position. But with Mr. Putin and special military operations, "I realized that I could peacefully and legally express my position against the invasion," he said, clarifying his intention to oppose President Putin as a platform for voters who oppose the invasion.

Expectations rise: Soldiers' wives also appeal

In order to be registered as a candidate for the Russian presidential election, it is necessary to collect signatures from a certain number of voters and submit them to the Central Election Commission by January 31st.

For this reason, former member of the House of Representatives Nadezhdin visited various locations and appealed for support on the Internet, working to collect the 100,000 signatures needed for the notification.

Voters visiting the office in the capital Moscow every day to sign their signatures are said to have been visited by NHK in late January. People were lining up until the end.

Among the people who visited, there were many young people, and one woman, a 28-year-old doctor, said, ``I came because of Mr. Nadezhdin's candidacy.He is one of the few anti-war candidates, so I want him to be on the list.'' It may be difficult to win, but in order to save Russian society, I think we need a candidate to oppose Mr. Putin.''

Another man, an 18-year-old student, said, ``I want to vote for Mr. Nadezhdin because he is liberal and has anti-war values.''The withdrawal of troops from Ukraine, the lifting of sanctions imposed on Russia, and the halting of price increases as a result.'' I hope so.''

A woman in her 40s said, ``We must stop the bloodshed in Ukraine and the shedding of Russian blood.We need a candidate other than Mr. Putin in the presidential election.The people should be given the opportunity to choose.'' Mr. Nadezhdin was appealing for formal recognition as Mr. Putin's opponent.

Furthermore, on the 11th of last month, Mr. Nadezhdin, who has criticized the military invasion of Ukraine, met in Moscow with the wives of Russian soldiers dispatched to the battlefield.

During this time, Mr. Nadejdin listened to the earnest pleas of his wives, who said, ``Our wish is for our husbands to return home.''

Regarding Mr. Nadezhdin, support was expressed by Ms. Duntsova, a female journalist who briefly attracted attention when she announced her candidacy for the presidential election but was not allowed to do so, as well as from opposition leader Mr. Navalny's group. There are also voices of support, and the focus is first on whether Nadezhdin will be officially registered as a candidate.