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More than 130,000 participate in rally For Strong Russia in Moscow

Police and the National Guard of Russia provide security at the event

© Mikhail Klementyev/TASS

MOSCOW, March 3. /TASS/. More than 130,000 people have come to participate in the rally dubbed For Strong Russia in Moscow on Saturday, the Interior Ministry's representative Irina Volk told TASS on Saturday.

"The rally For Strong Russia, organized at the Luzhniki sports complex features more than 130,000 participants," she said. "The police and Russian Guard provide order and security at the event."

The rally in support for presidential candidate Vladimir Putin began at midday on Saturday. The candidate’s election headquarters said the event "is paid for from the election fund," and the candidate will report the expenses to the Central Election Committee, to be published on the Committee’s website.

The headquarters’ press secretary, Andrei Kondrashov, said 299 Russian and 125 foreign reporters had been accredited to the event. They represent the media from the U.S., Japan, Spain, Germany, China, the UK, France, Denmark, he added.

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