Book Review: Winter Is Coming by Garry Kasparov

Winter Is Coming: Why Vladimir Putin and the Enemies of the Free World Must Be Stopped by Garry Kasparov

Even though this book was written in 2015, it could easily come out today (i.e. in 2022) and make the same points about the same issues. In 2015, Vladimir Putin annexed the Crimea and invaded eastern Ukraine. In 2022, the invasion of Ukraine by Putin's forces is depressingly similar, though the Ukrainians have been making a fantastic stand against their oppressors.

Kasparov rose to fame in the 1980s as a chess champion. His career let him travel outside of the Soviet Union and see the rest of the world. His acquired cosmopolitan viewpoint gave him the impetus to become a political advocate and a human rights champion at the end of his chess career. He, along with most other Russians, rejoiced at the downfall of the U.S.S.R. and looked forward to the democratic reforms and new freedoms promised by their new constitution. He chronicles the struggles to retain a democracy as those in power started to take care of themselves more than take care of the country. A slow slide led to the election of Vladimir Putin as president in 1999. Putin was formerly a KGB lieutenant colonel and presented himself as a strong man to lead the nation. He continued the corrupt practices from before, but also proceeded to take over media outlets and other industries. He controlled the internal messaging about his government and started to persecute his critics and rivals, often with trumped up charges or ongoing invasive surveillance. Things deteriorated over time to the point where he could invade places like Georgia and Ukraine with little internal opposition. 

These tragedies were made worse by the lack of external opposition, i.e. the West's response. G7 leadership initially embraced Putin as a fellow head of an industrialized democracy, with a mixture of positive hopes and back-burner concerns about the former Soviet nuclear arsenal. No one from Bill Clinton, George Bush, and Barak Obama stood up to Putin. The main policy conducted by the United States (as well as European allies) was "hands off." Maybe there were discouraging words or UN resolutions condemning Putin's activities. Substantive penalties were not used. These tactics only encouraged Putin to be more aggressive, more of a bully. As of Kasparov's writing, Ukraine was still in jeopardy, needing more than humanitarian support to defend their internationally-recognized borders from an unjust aggressor. 

Kasparov is an entertaining writer with a surprisingly good grasp of English metaphors and idioms. He is forthright and backs up his opinions and recommendations with a good grounding in the history of recent events. His occasional bombast is understandable since he has actually fought the corrupt government that he is railing against. He gives a very detailed and very convincing comparison between Putin and Hitler, something he does not do lightly or in a facile, internet-meme manner. Putin is not a democratic leader but more like a mafia-style crime boss, making deals and threats to keep himself and his cronies in power and wealth. Kasparov's arguments are eye-opening.

Recommended for a healthy dose of insight into the state of Russia and its leaders.

 

SAMPLE QUOTE--about the war in Ukraine (in 2015): 

As Russian troops and armored columns advance in Eastern Ukraine the Ukrainian government begs for aid from the free world. That's the same free world Ukrainians hoped would receive them and protect them as one of its own after the protesters of Maidan grasped their victory paid in blood. The leaders of the free world, meanwhile, are still struggling to find the right terminology to free themselves from the moral responsibility to provide that protection. Putin's invasion of a sovereign European nation is an "incursion," much like Crimea--remember Crimea?--was an "uncontested arrival" instead of Anschluss. [pp. 243-244]