Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, said on Monday she will seek the Russian presidency should Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin no longer be in power.
In an interview with the BBC, Navalnaya was asked whether she could imagine ever standing for the presidency.
When the time is right, “I will participate in the elections … as a candidate,” she said.
“My political opponent is Vladimir Putin. And I will do everything to make his regime fall as soon as possible.”
Navalnaya is currently promoting the autobiography “Patriot” by her late husband, who died in a Russian penal colony at the beginning of the year. He was one of Putin’s biggest critics and opponents.
After his death, his wife announced that she would continue his opposition work from exile abroad. The circumstances of Navalny’s death have not been clarified but his wife accused Putin of having him murdered.
Everything has changed in her and her family’s life since his death, Navalnaya added. But she explained that she a lot planned in a post-Putin Russia and that this has helped her cope.
During Navalny’s time in prison, she felt very close to him. “And of course it’s very difficult without him,” she added.
Navalnaya – who lives abroad – said that while Putin is in charge, she cannot go back home. But she said she looks forward to the day she believes will inevitably come, when the Putin era ends and Russia once again opens up.
