Exiled Russian opposition figure and former chess world champion Garry Kasparov revealed that American and Lithuanian security services warned him that his life was in danger. Kasparov stated he was one of two prominent dissidents advised to take specific safety precautions, measures he has since implemented.
The disclosures follow an indictment unsealed by the US Justice Department charging five alleged members of a Kremlin-linked network with plotting attacks and murders targeting Russian dissidents and defectors globally. Kasparov wrote in his publication The Next Move that while authorities did not explicitly designate him and fellow Free Russia Forum co-founder Ivan Tyutrin as immediate targets, both received explicit warnings regarding their security. Even if I thought it was possible to do so, kasparov wrote separately: “I will not stop and I will not hide. My family and I will not truly be safe as long as [Russian President Vladimir] Putin is in power in Russia – a circumstance shared by millions.
Reports from Spanish newspaper El Mundo indicated that Kasparov was placed under enhanced security protection during the summer, marking a first since his relocation to the United States. Despite the threats, Kasparov declared that he will neither halt his political activities nor attempt to hide, adding that his family remains unsafe while the current Russian leadership remains in power.
Kasparov transitioned from competitive chess to political activism in 2005, establishing opposition movements before leaving Russia in 2013. Following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Moscow designated him a foreign agent and subsequently added him to a list of terrorists and extremists in 2024, classifications he strongly rejects. Founding movements that openly opposed Putin before fleeing Russia in 2013, kasparov retired from competitive chess in 2005 to pursue a career in politics.
The second individual mentioned in connection with the security warnings, Ilya Ponomarev, served as the sole Russian parliament member to vote against the annexation of Crimea in 2014 before going into exile in Ukraine. Ponomarev refrained from confirming whether he received a direct tip regarding the plot but characterized the allegations as representing a heightened level of escalation by Moscow. According to the other, Target, Ponomarev, was the only Russian MP who voted against the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and later went into exile in Ukraine.
According to the US Justice Department, the intelligence network, referred to as the RIS Network, has operated since at least 2024 to execute attacks and assassinations against dissidents internationally. Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A Eisenberg stated that the five indicted suspects—Yuri Khrameev, Kirill Khrameev, Oemis Romagoza Durruthy, Yaidel Delgado Suarez, and Angel Eduardo Castro—attempted to recruit individuals within the United States and abroad to carry out killings on behalf of the Kremlin.
All five accused individuals remain at large. When the federal indictment was unsealed, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to address the allegations, stating that the Russian government would not comment without reviewing credible evidence and tangible facts.
