A leading Russian gay rights activist urged President Dmitry Medvedev to sanction a gay pride parade in Moscow scheduled for later this month.
Nikolai Alexeyev's appeal came after repeated refusals from Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, who has called homosexuality "satanic".
Alexeyev said activists want to hold the parade on May 31 to symbolise resistance to intolerance and xenophobia.
He said the Moscow park where the parade is planned falls under federal rather than municipal jurisdiction, and vowed that activists would rally even if the request is denied.
Russia decriminalised homosexuality in 1993, but opposition to gay rights remains strong and frequently turns violent.
Religious leaders and nationalists have all vocally opposed past efforts by Russian gays and lesbians to stage public demonstrations or rallies.
In 2006, gay activists clashed with police and nationalist protesters as they tried to lay flowers at a site outside the Kremlin walls.
Homosexuality is denounced by the dominant Russian Orthodox church, and while he was president Vladimir Putin implied that gays were undermining the country and its demographic problem by not procreating.
Medvedev, who was inaugurated as Russia's president earlier this month, hasn't expressed any opinion toward gays and lesbian publicly.
