Alexei Navalny's widow joins 'Noon Against Putin' protest in Berlin as Russians form huge queues outside embassy in London and visit polling stations across the world to spoil their ballot papers as president is set to win fifth term in power

Yulia Navalnaya, the widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, took part in a noon protest against President Vladimir Putin on Sunday in Berlin.

Navalnaya's spokesperson Kira Yarmysh posted pictures on X of the dissident standing in line in the German capital where Russians queued up to vote. Activists said that some people chanted 'Yulia, Yulia', and clapped.

Votes from Russian citizens living in other countries were being cast across the world.

In the UK, scores of people queued up outside the Russian Embassy in London to vote in the election. The line was at least half a mile long when MailOnline visited. 

Alexander, a 24-year-old former artilleryman in the Russian Army told MailOnline today that he wasn't confident anyone but Vladimir Putin would win the election. 

Navalnaya's spokesperson Kira Yarmysh posted pictures on X of the dissident standing in line in the German capital where Russians queued up to vote

One protestor in Paris held a sign that accused the despot of being an assassin

Alexander, a 24-year-old former artilleryman in the Russian Army, (pictured) told MailOnline today that he wasn't confident anyone but Vladimir Putin would win the election 

One man was seen carrying a speaker and blasting music up and down the enormous queue for the polling station at the embassy 

He said: '[I think] Putin will win. I’m not very happy about that. He’s killed the nation, and its next generation. A lot of fathers are [in Ukraine] and too many children will grow up without their fathers. Too many children’s mental health will be hurt.'

Despite this, Alexander said he didn't want to simply give up, given how much opposition leader Alexei Navalny gave in service of his country. 

'Navalny taught us never to give up. He was a brave person who wasn’t scared. He believed Russia will be better than it is now. I believe in this. It’s a beautiful country.' 

He added that hoped the next leader of Russia after Putin would be someone who looked out for the roughly 143 million people who live in the nation. 

'Every time a dictator or a king leaves, everyone wants their power for themselves. I hope we have a president who makes the lives in the nation better.' 

Ekaterina, a 42-year-old office worker, said she and her friend had been waiting at the embassy for nearly three-and-a-half hours by the time MailOnline spoke to her. 

Ekaterina, a 42-year-old office worker, (pictured) said she and her friend had been waiting at the embassy for nearly three-and-a-half hours

The queue outside the embassy was at least half a mile long

Many were seen dressed up in satirical costumes

'We haven’t had lunch, and my back hurts, but otherwise it’s cool because you can see so many people who are on the same page as you, and that you’re not the only one. It supports you from inside.

‘You feel confident and that you’re doing the right thing. I’m proud of myself and I hope my kids, when they grow up, they’ll be proud of me as well.' 

Despite her cheery attitude, she also said she wasn't hopeful about how the election would play out. But this would not stop her from going to the embassy to cast her ballot. 

'We just can’t keep silent. We know we won’t change anything, but it’s just not right to keep silent.

'I know it will not change anything, we all know that. But to not do anything, to not show that you don’t agree with something bad, it’s like you’re saying “I’m not strong enough, I can’t help here".' 

Vasily and Natasha, two young Russian citizens who had chosen to hand out water bottles to fellow voters, told MailOnline that despite how little they knew their vote mattered, they felt far better today than they did when Navalny died. 

Protests grew outside the Russian embassy in London

The queue went far down Bayswater Road, just north of Hyde Park 

Many said they would stay for as long as possible in order to cast their ballots

Natasha, who did not want to be photographed, said: 'This weekend is much better than it was a few weeks ago when Navalny died. That was really dark, and today it’s more cheerful.

'When Navalny died, it was a tragic event for the whole nation. Today’s a normal day, nothing happened; you vote and your vote doesn’t matter,' she dryly added. 

Vasily, who also did not want to be pictured, said that Navalny and his team were still having a huge effect on him and other Russians in other countries, and how they participated in the election. 

'Navalny’s team told us all to come out on Sunday at noon, the Noon against Putin protests. I believe many of those people came out because of that.' 

Egor, a games developer, and his wife Maria, both 25, said that they were in the long queue to do their bit to move the needle in any way they could. 

Egor said: 'I don’t remember seeing this many Russian people in London, but we’re all waiting here [to vote]. We’ve had the same president for nearly twenty years. You can do nothing else but hope.'

Egor, a games developer, and his wife Maria, both 25, (pictured) said that they were in the long queue to do their bit to move the needle in any way they could

The embassy is expected to close at 8pm tonight 

'I have a younger brother back in Russia who’s 22. I really worry about him getting drafted into the war. He cannot leave because he’s a cook by trade, and so it’s not feasible for a cook to move to another country. I just hope that everything will be okay for him,' he added. 

Egor said that he and his wife would would stay in the queue until they were made to leave, saying that it was the least they could do for the election: 'It’s not much, but it’s at least minimal effort to do something.

'Even if there’s no hope, you want to do at least something, not just sit and let everything happen to you.'

When asked whether he believed there was a way for Russia to escape Putin's clutches, he dryly said: 'Death by natural causes? Everyone’s mortal, at least we hope. 

'I don’t see a way that it will be the same [when Putin dies]. It might become worse, but I hope it will be better.'

Over in Paris, a large queue of people was seen outside the Russian embassy, while protestors were seen in nearby green spaces holding signs up with messages critical of Putin written on them. 

One protestor held a sign that accused the despot of being an assassin, while another compared Putin to Stalin, and called Russia's invasion of Ukraine 'genocide' and 'terrorism.' 

Yulia Navalnaya, widow of the late Kremlin opposition leader Alexei Navalny, talks to a woman during a rally near the Russian embassy in Berlin

People attend a rally in Berlin, near the Russian embassy where voters lined up to cast their ballots in the Russia's presidential election

In Russia itself, the main vehicle of protest across the nation has been the 'Noon against Putin' movement. 

Thousands across the nation who oppose the veteran Kremlin leader went to their local polling station at midday to either spoil their ballot paper in protest or to vote for one of the three candidates standing against Putin.

Others had vowed to scrawl the name of late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died last month in an Arctic prison, on their ballot paper.

Navalny's allies broadcast videos on YouTube of lines of people queuing up at different polling stations across Russia at midday who they said were there to peacefully protest.

Navalny had endorsed the 'Noon against Putin' plan in a message on social media facilitated by his lawyers before he died. The independent Novaya Gazeta newspaper called the planned action 'Navalny's political testament'.

Navalny's allies broadcast videos on YouTube of lines of people queuing up at different polling stations across Russia at midday

The Kremlin casts Navalny's political allies - most of whom are based outside Russia - as dangerous extremists out to destabilise the country on behalf of the West

Despite the protesters - who represent a small fraction of Russia's 114 million voters - Putin to tighten his grip on power in the election that is certain to deliver him a big victory. 

The Kremlin casts Navalny's political allies - most of whom are based outside Russia - as dangerous extremists out to destabilise the country on behalf of the West. 

It says Putin enjoys overwhelming support among ordinary Russians, pointing to opinion polls which put his approval rating above 80%.

With Russia's vast landmass stretching across 11 time zones, protest voters were scattered rather than concentrated into a single mass, making it hard to estimate how many people turned up for the protest event.

The size of the queues at each polling station shown on Navalny's channel ranged from a few dozen people to what looked like several hundred people.