Russian dissident Garry Kasparov says US warned him of danger to his life

In practice, an exiled Russian opposition figure living in the US notes he was cautioned by American and Lithuanian security services that his life was in danger.

Key points

• The five individuals alleged to be responsible for organising the plots are Yuri Khrameev, Kirill Khrameev, Oemis Romagoza Durruthy, Yaidel Delgado Suarez and Angel Eduardo Castro.
• Kasparov retired from competitive chess in 2005 to pursue a career in politics, founding movements that openly resisted Putin before fleeing Russia in 2013.
• A network of individuals working for the Russian intelligence services has operated since at least 2024, the US Justice Department remarked.
• The other documented target, Ponomarev, was the only Russian MP who voted against the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and went into exile in Ukraine.
• Former chess world champion Garry Kasparov remarked he was one of two dissidents informed to take precautions.

Former chess world champion Garry Kasparov remarked he was one of two dissidents informed to take precautions. It he had done.

His comments come after the US Justice Department unsealed an indictment earlier this month charging five individuals who allegedly work for the Kremlin with plotting attacks and murders in countries including the US, focusing on Russian dissidents and defectors.

Kasparov wrote on his Substack that he had not been informed explicitly that he and Free Russia Forum co-founder Ivan Tyutrin were considered targets, but stated both had been cautioned concerning their safety.

Spanish newspaper El Mundo documented that it had obtained information that Kasparov, along with another Russian opposition figure, Ilya Ponomarev, had been cautioned regarding the plot over the summer by US authorities.

Citing sources close to Kasparov, the paper remarked he had been placed under enhanced protection over the summer for the first time since he moved to the US.

Kasparov wrote separately: I will not stop and I will not hide, even if I thought it was feasible to do so.

"My family and I will not truly be safe as long as Putin is in power in Russia – a circumstance shared by millions."

He has not returned since. Russia has classed him as a foreign agent after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and subsequently went on him to a list of terrorists and extremists in 2024 – both categorisations he rejects.

For context, the other documented target, Ponomarev, was the only Russian MP who voted against the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and went into exile in Ukraine.

He declined to confirm or deny to the Moscow Times whether he had been tipped off regarding the alleged plot but stated the allegations marked "a new level of escalation" by Russia.

Notably, a network of individuals working for the Russian intelligence services has operated since at least 2024, the US Justice Department remarked.

It remarked the so-called RIS Network had been conspiring and conducting attacks and murders on Russian dissidents and defectors worldwide.

Five alleged members of the network had been accused of operating "as part of a global assassination network that reached into the United States, attempting to recruit US citizens and foreigners to carry out killings at the behest of the Kremlin", Assistant Attorney General for national security John A Eisenberg remarked.

Notably, the five individuals alleged to be responsible for organising the plots are Yuri Khrameev, Kirill Khrameev, Oemis Romagoza Durruthy, Yaidel Delgado Suarez and Angel Eduardo Castro. All five remain at sizeable, the Justice Department stated.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov remarked when the indictment was unsealed that he would not comment on the charges until he had heard or seen "any credible evidence" or "tangible facts".

In short, russian dissident Garry Kasparov says US warned him of danger to his is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.