Moscow, the Russian capital where Andrei Sakharov was born, raised, and spent most of his adult life, remains a city without a public monument to one of its world-renowned citizens (one statue does exist, but it stands behind the closed gates of MIFI, one of Moscow’s universities).
In 2021, during the centenary of Sakharov’s birth, which was marked across the country, the idea of erecting a monument in Moscow was actively discussed. One proposed location was Prospekt Sakharova, a major thoroughfare in central Moscow. However, the authorities openly expressed concern that combining a street bearing his name with a monument could turn the site into a focal point for political protest.
Following the start of the war against Ukraine, Russian authorities swiftly suppressed nearly all public expressions of dissent. Even laying flowers at existing monuments to Ukrainian writers has, at times, led to detention by police. Despite this, placing flowers in certain locations on specific dates remains one of the few ways to express defiance and protest against the Kremlin.
Andrei Sakharov’s statue in St Petersburg, erected in 2003, has become one such site. In the past three years, people have gathered there to lay flowers on the dates marking Alexei Navalny’s birth and death. Since 2024, the monument — situated in a quiet square surrounded by the historic buildings of St Petersburg University — has evolved into an informal meeting place to honour Navalny, while drawing parallels between the two men, both of whom courageously opposed the regime. Anti-war single-person pickets, as well as small commemorations for victims of political repression, also occasionally take place at the site.