Human rights lawyer, defended imprisoned tycoon (and Putin foe) Mikhail Khodorkovsky
“It seems to me that Putin is not an altogether scrupulous person. He does not realize that his return to the highest office would be a disaster for Russia. This would not only perpetuate the stagnation that we already have today, but would also embolden the most negative forces and trends. The only hope is that the political elite, including Putin’s own inner circle, realizes this. These are sensible people who associate closely with the West. If Putin’s first two terms suited almost everybody who pursued his own interests, far removed from the interests of Russia, now the number of discontented people has grown tremendously.”