What happened in this episode?
Bari Weiss interviews Russian dissident and former world chess champion Garry Kasparov about what he describes as an alleged Russian assassination network targeting regime critics abroad. Kasparov says an indictment has been published using anonymised labels for intended targets, and recalls that the FBI met with him and advised heightened caution. He says he cannot confirm he is explicitly named in the indictment, but argues the locations referenced and other details make it likely. Kasparov also links the alleged plot to a wider pattern of Kremlin actions abroad, while stressing he has not seen proof such as direct orders from Vladimir Putin.
The conversation then broadens to Kasparov’s view of the war in Ukraine and Western policy. He argues the conflicts involving Russia, Iran, China and North Korea should be viewed as interconnected, and criticises successive US administrations and European governments for what he calls retreat and appeasement, including energy dependence on Russia. Kasparov contends Putin was explicit for years about goals such as rolling NATO back to its 1997 borders.
Kasparov also discusses his US-based political work with the Renew Democracy Initiative and “The Next Move”, saying he wants to rebuild a democratic centre against extremism on left and right and reduce the influence of online “echo chambers”. He warns that younger Americans’ openness to communism reflects ignorance of its historical outcomes, and argues US global leadership remains necessary, calling the United Nations ineffective in its current form.
