Igor Girkin, a prominent ultranationalist in custody in Russia awaiting trial on charges of inciting extremism, nominated himself to run for president in 2024 in an announcement read on his behalf on Saturday, the online SOTA news channel said.
Girkin said from custody in August that he would make a better president than Vladimir Putin, whom he described as "too kind". His comments at the time were laced with irony and he is considered an unlikely contender.
In a post on its Telegram channel, SOTA carried a video of Oleg Nelzin, whom it described as co-chair of a group called Russian Movement for Strelkov, reading a letter from Girkin at a news conference.
The letter instructed his followers to set up a headquarters and start collecting signatures for his candidacy, SOTA said. Supporters of Girkin said in September that his criminal investigation had been extended until Dec. 18.
Girkin, who lost an appeal against pre-trial detention in a Moscow court in August, is best known in the West for his conviction in absentia by a Dutch court for his role in shooting down a Malaysian passenger plane over eastern Ukraine in 2014.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said Putin has unprecedented support and that he would win an overwhelming majority if he ran.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Russian Propaganda Group Behind Fake Kamala Harris Hit-And-Run Story: Microsoft Opinion: Opinion | India's Options For Russia-Ukraine Peace Are Growing Complicated Meta Bans Russian State Media Outlets Worldwide For 'Interference Activity' 9 Dead, 2,800 Hurt As Pagers Explode Across Lebanon, Hezbollah Blames Israel "Wear Proper Undergarments": Delta Airlines' New Memo For Flight Attendants IndiGo Flight Tailstrike Leaves Huge Dent During Take-Off From Delhi Airport Live Updates: J&K To Vote In First Assembly Elections In A Decade Today Donald Trump Says He Will Meet With PM Modi Next Week Israel Planted Explosives In Hezbollah's Taiwan-Made Pagers: Report Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.