Russia arrests political opposition activists in absentia

The Syktyvkar city court in Russia issued arrests in absentia to world chess champion and Free Russia Forum co-founder Garry Kasparov, along with several other activists, on charges of creating a "terrorist community," financing "terrorist activities," and publicly calling for terrorism.

Activist Yevgeniya Chirikova, former executive director of the Russian solidarity movement  Ivan Tyutrin, and former State Duma deputy Gennady Gudkov were also issued arrests. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported that a criminal case was initiated based on the materials of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) in the Republic of Komi.

The details of the case are not yet available.

Garry Kasparov is the 13th world chess champion and chairman of the Human Rights Foundation. He fled Russia in 2013 and currently lives in New York City. Kasparov co-founded the Free Russia Forum with activist Ivan Tyutrin back in 2016. The Forum positions itself as an intellectual alternative to the current political regime in Russia.

Earlier this year, Kasparov was added to a list of "terrorists and extremists" by Russia's financial intelligence wing, Rosfinmonitoring. His name was reportedly listed with an asterisk, indicating that a criminal case was initiated against him under "terrorist" charges. Tyutrin, Chirikova, and Gudkov had been listed prior to Kasporov's addition.

Russian courts often use charges of "extremism" to crack down on political opposition figures in the country.

Opinion: How Russia’s succession problem makes its future uncertain

In 2023, several domestic developments in Russia, such as the summer mercenary mutiny by Yegveny Prigozhin or the autumn antisemitic riots in Makhachkala, indicated growing regime fragility. These and an accumulation of foreign policy challenges have renewed discussion of what happens to Putin’s sys…

The Kyiv IndependentAndreas Umland