Russia’s Federal Security Service announced on Tuesday that they have initiated a criminal case against Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a prominent critic of the Kremlin who resides in exile. The charges accuse him of establishing a “terrorist organization” and planning a violent takeover of power. Khodorkovsky, a former oil magnate and once the wealthiest individual in Russia, spent a decade in a Siberian prison on charges of fraud that were widely believed to be politically motivated by Western nations.
The Federal Security Service specified that the allegations pertain to the activities of a group supported by Khodorkovsky that opposes the conflict in Ukraine. This group, known as the Anti-War Committee, has been outlawed in Russia. There has been no immediate response from Khodorkovsky or his associates.
Khodorkovsky rose to fame as one of the affluent businessmen who supported Boris Yeltsin, Russia’s former president, during the 1990s, amassing significant influence over the Russian economy. His downfall came as Vladimir Putin, Yeltsin’s successor, consolidated control over previously autonomous business figures.
Pardoned in 2013, Khodorkovsky left Russia and has since aligned himself with various anti-Putin factions. He has emerged as a prominent figure among Russian exiles supporting Kyiv against Moscow in the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Following the outbreak of the war, he was labeled a “foreign agent” by the Russian government.
