This Isn't Putin's War; It's Russia's War

• Garry Kasparov
• 21.10.2026, 19:53

No dictator could have waged a war of this magnitude without having fairly significant support—and not just from the elites.

This is not Putin’s war. It is not Putin’s war; it is Russia’s war. Because it is absolutely clear—and I hate to say this—but Putin has support. One could say he has the support of a significant majority—the majority of Russian society—which, for the most part, believes that, on the whole, this war aligns with their view of the world and, incidentally, brings certain economic and social benefits to a large segment of the population that was previously deprived of them.

If you are on Russian territory today, then you are directly or indirectly participating in an aggressive, criminal war.

There are all kinds of people there. Of course, there are those who have absolutely nothing to do with it, but they are far fewer in number. But in fact, the entire Russian economy is subordinated to the war. Therefore, there is a high probability that even this very intelligent person, who is against the war, is involved. Well, people have to make a living, after all. They have to do something, earn a living somehow. It’s very likely that they’re directly or indirectly—and often directly—connected to the military-industrial complex.

My goal is to create the necessary conditions for those who are able and willing to leave Russia—so they aren’t associated with the regime and, among other things, don’t have to build missiles if they don’t want to, or can build them somewhere else, just not in Russia.

One simply has to understand that no dictator could have waged a war of this scale—a full-scale war—for nearly five years without having quite significant support not only from the elites but also from the majority of society.

Garry Kasparov, “Radio Liberty”