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Major anti-war protests in Russia

ANALYSIS from former Moscow correspondent Norman Hermant

It's not a surprise there's significant opposition in Russia to war with Ukraine. The two countries are both predominantly Slavic, and they have strong historical and cultural ties.

But the size of anti-war protests in several Russian cities is an indication that an anti-war movement could grow quickly.

When Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 there were large pro-Ukrainian protests, but there were also pro-Crimean demonstrations in support of Moscow's moves orchestrated by the Kremlin. And unlike in 2014, there are already indications Russia will suffer losses. As young soldiers are killed, the anti-war sentiment will increase.

One Muscovite who attended an anti-war protest said for much of Thursday her social media feeds were largely free of Ukraine content, but as the day wore on her friends started to share more material against the Russian invasion.

The Kremlin had made it clear any demonstrations would be illegal, and protest organisers were wary of their feeds being scrubbed by security services. In some cases they got creative.

An image shared on Instagram showed people walking, surrounding a picture of the famed Russian author Alexander Pushkin and the number 7.

This meant protesters were meeting at Pushkinskaya Square in central Moscow at 7 o'clock. More than 600 demonstrators were arrested. In all 1,700 arrests were made at protests in Moscow, St Petersburg and other cities.