Thanks to a leading Russian critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, we now have proof that Russian attorney Natalya Veselnitskaya is a cutout or intermediary for the Russian government.
As the New York Times reported last Friday, emails provided by Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s investigative organization, Dossier, illustrate Veselnitskaya’s closeness to the Kremlin elite. That’s relevant because Veselnitskaya attended a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower with Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort. That meeting is reported to be a major part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of possible Trump campaign collusion with Russia.
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Regardless, Khodorkovsky deserves great credit for his continuing effort to confront Putin.
After all, he spent 10 years in a Russian prison between 2003 and 2013, in which time he was attacked at the behest of Russian security services. Since being freed, Khodorkovsky has been in exile and is now labeled by Putin’s government as a traitor. He knows that this likely means he’s a top target for Putin’s energetic and globally operating assassination squads.
It would be easy for the oligarch to stay silent and live out his days in luxury. Instead, Khodorkovsky works to illuminate the Russian president’s kleptocracy.
But while there are other Russian activists for the rule of law such as Alexei Navalny, what makes Khodorkovsky unique is his status as a rich Russian oligarch. That cuts to the heart of Putin’s rule, which is based on the oligarchs’ overt fealty to the Kremlin and their role as Putin’s global representatives.
By challenging Putin with his resources and his symbolism, Khodorkovsky serves Russia’s better future. If only more oligarchs had his courage.
Correction: A previous version of this piece said Khodorkovsky was in prison for five years, from 2005 to 2010.
