Le Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) announced Tuesday the opening of a criminal investigation targeting several opposition figures in exile, including the former oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky, accusing them of forming a "terrorist organization" and plot to seize power by force.
According to the FSB statement, the exiled opponents coordinated their activities from abroad with the aim of "destabilize Russia" andorganize violent actions on the national territory. In addition to Khodorkovsky, the Russian authorities cite in particular the chess champion Garry Kasparov, a dissident figure in exile, as well as other activists affiliated with political platforms based in Europe.
The former head of the Yukos oil group, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, exiled in London since his release in 2013, immediately denounced “absurd and political” accusations, considering that it is a Kremlin's attempt to intimidate opposition abroadKasparov, who is also the subject of the proceedings, described the announcement as "new evidence of the authoritarian drift of Vladimir Putin's regime."
These accusations come as Russia approaches the thousandth day of his invasion of Ukraine, and that Moscow intensifies repression against dissenting voices, including those installed outside the country.
In a tense context, the Council of Europe and several human rights organizations have started a dialogue with exiled Russian opponents to consider legal protection mechanismsObservers believe that these prosecutions could mark a new step in the international criminalization of the Russian opposition.
