Tens of thousands of supporters of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin rallied in Moscow Thursday. The pro-Putin crowd marched along the Moscow River before filing into nearby Luzhniki stadium to hear him speak.
Thousands March in Pro-Putin Rally in Moscow
People take part in a procession along Frunzenskaya quay to support presidential candidate and Russia's current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on the Defender of the Fatherland Day near the Moskva River in Moscow, February 23, 2012. (Reuters)
People take part in a rally to support presidential candidate and Russia's current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin at the Luzhniki stadium on the Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow, February 23, 2012. (Reuters)
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, center, addresses a massive rally in his support at Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Feb. 23, 2012. (AP photo)
Presidential candidate and Russia's current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin waves during a rally to support his candidature in the upcoming presidential election at the Luzhniki stadium on the Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow, February 23, 2012.
A woman dances in front of a monument of Soviet State founder Vladimir Lenin, after a rally to support presidential candidate and Russia's current Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, outside the Luzhniki stadium on the Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow,