Russia's election commission has rejected anti-war candidate Boris Nadezhdin as a candidate in next month's presidential election.
Nadezhdin has been relatively critical of Vladimir Putin's large-scale war in Ukraine, while only a few dissenting voices have been tolerated in Russia.
He told the BBC that he would appeal the decision to Russia's Supreme Court, saying he understood the “real situation” in the country, where decisions are sometimes made for political rather than legal reasons.
He also added that he is sure that Russia will be a peaceful and free country in the future, because the country's people want a “normal future.”
