Mikhail Khodorkovsky, one of Vladimir Putin’s most prominent critics, has issued a stark warning to Europe: prepare for a prolonged geopolitical struggle with Russia, independent of the outcome in Ukraine.
Speaking at a closed event in Brussels, Khodorkovsky predicted a “cold war” lasting at least ten years, in which Russia will continue using hybrid tactics to destabilize the West. He argued that the only thing restraining Russia from further aggression is Putin’s perception that the West poses a serious military threat.
The exiled former oil tycoon, who spent a decade in Russian prisons, downplayed the impact of Western sanctions and Ukrainian drone attacks, describing them as largely symbolic. He compared the damage to Russia’s massive industrial complexes as “stepping on someone’s foot.”
Khodorkovsky emphasized that Russia’s true vulnerability was in the first two years of the invasion of Ukraine, when military setbacks could have significantly shaken Putin’s rule—a chance he says was missed.
Looking ahead, Khodorkovsky said it could take decades to undo Russia’s imperial-military ideology, warning that his generation may never see a return to normalcy in Russian society. Yet he expressed hope for one day returning to a post-Putin Russia.
