Gary Kasparo criticizes Scholes and Merkel

After Lithuania closed its borders to Russian citizens, Garry Kasparov had previously called for only Russians who sign a declaration to be allowed into the country. The declaration should contain three principles: “The war is criminal, Putin’s regime is illegitimate and Ukraine is indivisible”. It is not possible to allow people to travel back and forth like that. The 59-year-old compared the situation to Germany during the Nazi era: “There was no German tourism in London in 1941.”

However, Kasparov did not spare Merkel’s successor in his criticism. Chancellor Scholes probably wants to make sure “the German tanks on the victory march through Kiev are fresh and scratch-free” because they are not operational. “Is he already looking for new deals with war criminal Putin?” asks Kasparov.

He notes the German government’s reluctance to make modern main battle tanks such as the Panther 2 available to Ukraine. The central government has so far indicated that a common European strategy is being followed and other countries have not yet supplied battle tanks. One reason is the fear that Russia might find these offensive weapons as NATO countries enter the war.

But Kasparov continues to rail against Merkel: “Your predecessor, Schröder, on the other hand, is almost respectable, openly working for Putin as an employee, lawyer and dominator. This raises uncomfortable questions about Merkel’s motives and what information Putin may have from the bad old days,” He writes. He may be referring to the incriminating documents that former KGB officer Putin holds against Merkel.

Former Grandmaster Kasparov was the official World Champion of the World Chess Federation FIDE from 1985 to 1993 and is still considered one of the greatest chess players today. After the end of his career in 2005, he devoted himself to politics. Among other things, he founded the coalition “The Other Russia”, but did not stand with it in the elections. In 2008 he founded the extra-parliamentary movement Solidarnost (Solidarity).

He was arrested several times for criticizing the Kremlin, including at a demonstration for the music group “Pussy Riot”. Although he was acquitted, he left Russia in 2013 and never returned. Kasparov has received many awards for his political commitment. More recently, he predicted that by the spring of 2023 Russia would run out of ammunition and the economy would no longer be able to meet basic needs.