Garry Kasparov is the chairman of the Renew Democracy Initiative, which publishes The Next Move.
For over two decades, since the moment I retired from chess to stand up against Putin’s rising dictatorship, I’ve been asked, “Aren’t you worried about your safety?”
My friend and opposition colleague Boris Nemtsov was murdered in cold blood in front of the Kremlin on February 27, 2015, and the questions redoubled.
I always tried to downplay this uncomfortable line of inquiry, relying on a set of stock answers while I was on a book tour for Winter Is Coming.
“Would it help if I were worried?”
“I don’t fly Aeroflot and I don’t drink tea with strangers.”
“I decided long ago that I was going to do what I knew was right.”
The Kremlin’s fondness for international assassinations of its critics and enemies has a long history. This year, Moscow has ramped up its covert actions and sabotage campaign across Europe. So today’s news naming me and my long-time associate and Free Russia Forum co-founder Ivan Tyutrin as assassination targets cannot be called a surprise—but it’s still a shock.
Neither I nor Ivan have been told explicitly that we were the targets whose names are redacted in the indictment of the assassins. We were, however, warned by security services in Lithuania and the US that our lives were in danger and that we should take precautions, which I did and will continue to do.
But I will not stop and I will not hide, even if I thought it was possible to do so. I believe that the best defense is a good offense. My family and I will not truly be safe as long as Putin is in power in Russia—a circumstance shared by millions. And so I will continue to do everything I can to rally the free world against Putin’s murderous dictatorship, especially by supporting Ukraine militarily and economically—and punishing Russia in similar fashion.
In fact, I’m writing these words from Strasbourg, France, where we are doing our best to bring pressure via the European Court of Human Rights. It is vital to create legal mechanisms to release frozen Russian funds, especially in Belgium, and we greatly appreciate PACE President Petra Bayr’s leadership in this regard. Expect more news on this front tomorrow.
My thanks to everyone who joins me in this cause and to those who have sent me kind words of support after this news.
A note from RDI CEO Uriel Epshtein: I’m lucky. Having been born in the US to Soviet parents, I only ever heard about life under dictatorship. But now things are getting real: I reached out to all of you on Monday noting that the security situation had changed. Now, the full story has leaked, and we can speak a bit more openly.
This is a scary situation, but as Garry said, worrying won’t change anything. The only way out is through. Our safety and the safety of countless millions hinge on Putin’s ultimate defeat. So RDI has no intention of backing down. We’ll continue to deliver aid to the frontlines in Ukraine, support dissidents here in the US, and wage the narrative battle on The Next Move. I also can’t hide the fact that doing this kind of work has gotten more expensive. We have to take more precautions and spend more money on security, both physical and digital.
We need you to help make it possible. You can advance this work by supporting RDI directly, becoming a premium subscriber, or gifting a subscription. The fight continues!
Many have paid the ultimate price fighting evil dictators. Alexei Navalny among the most prominent. Putin is a weak little man that hides in a gelded palace. He fears you and others. Thank you for your work.
Putin's tool is in the White House.