The Associated Press reported that 20,000 people attended the march in Moscow, while the local police estimated the attendance at 5,000.
Tatyana Makeyeva / Reuters
A supporter of the self-proclaimed republics of Donbass and Luhansk dressed as Uncle Sam at the anti-war rally in Moscow.
Protesters marched from Pushkin Square to Sakharov Avenue in central Moscow.
Sasha Mordovets / Getty Images
People carried Russian and Ukrainian flags as well as anti-war flags at the protest.
Maxim Zmeyev / Reuters
Advertisement
As they marched down the street, protesters chanted "No to war!" and "Stop lying!"
Maxim Zmeyev / Reuters
Ukraine and other nations accuse Russia of equipping the rebels with weapons and sending troops into the area, although officials in Moscow have denied this.
Sasha Mordovets / Getty Images
Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov attended the anti-war rally.
This protester wears a badge that reads, "No war!" and a sticker that says, "Take away your children from war."
Maxim Zmeyev / Reuters
Advertisement
A similar anti-war protest took place in St. Petersburg.
Alexander Demianchuk / Reuters
The sign above reads: "This war is our fault! Throw your weapon!"
Moscow police stepped up their security in preparation for the protests.
Sergei Karpukhin / Reuters
At least one fight broke out between anti-war protesters and Russian nationalists.
Sergei Karpukhin / Reuters
Advertisement
This is the first major protest since the conflict began five months ago, after Russia annexed Ukraine's southern Crimea peninsula.
Maxim Zmeyev / Reuters
More than 3,000 people have died in the conflict so far.
Sasha Mordovets / Getty Images
"Our country is acting as an aggressor, like Germany in the war," demonstrator Konstantin Alexeyev, 35, said to the Associated Press.
A cease-fire was called on Sept. 5, but it has been repeatedly broken.
Sasha Mordovets / Getty Images
Advertisement
Negotiators worked on a deal to create buffer zones between warring sides and to pull back heavy weaponry, but Ukraine's national security council said the cease-fire must be respected before other agreements could be fulfilled.
Maxim Zmeyev / Reuters
{{ blurb }}
{{/blurb}} {{#picture_url}}