There is little doubt about the outcome, should he run, but the election in March carries more significance as the first one since the invasion of Ukraine.
Russia held exercises demonstrating its power to sink ships and stop those that try to run its blockade. For Ukrainian food exports to resume, Moscow said, a list of demands must be met.
The arrest was a sign that Russia was clamping down further on dissent, even among prominent nationalists, after last month’s brief mutiny by Wagner mercenaries.
The assaults, with Western tanks and armored vehicles, appear to mark a long-awaited counteroffensive that Ukraine hopes will retake territory and shore up allies’ resolve to keep supplying weapons.