by Ashley Smith | Feb 4, 2026 | Podcast, Politics and Movements: International, Russia, Solidarity Without Exception, War in Ukraine
Over the last two decades, Vladimir Putin has transformed his government in Russia from a managed democracy into an authoritarian regime. Many now view it as neofascist. Abroad, it has launched war after war to rebuild Russia’s former empire, while at home it has crushed the democracy movement, repressed all protests against Putin’s imperialist war in Ukraine, and jailed thousands of political prisoners. Two Russian dissidents, Ksenia Kagarlitskaya and Ilya Budraitskis, join Ashley Smith in this episode of Solidarity Without Exception.
Resource links:
Freedom Zone
Posle Media
Ilya Budraitskis, Dissidents Among Dissidents
Credits:
Production: Ashley Smith
Post-Production: Alina Nehlich
Transcript
The following is a rushed transcript and may contain errors. A proofread version will be made available as soon as possible.
Ilya Budraitskis:
Welcome to Solidarity Without Exception. I’m Ashley Smith. Blanca m and I are co-hosts of this podcast. It is sponsored by the Ukraine Solidarity Network and produced by The Real News Network. Today we are joined by Russian activist Ksenia Kagarlitskaya and Ilya Budraitskis to discuss Vladimir Putin’s regime, his imperialist war in Ukraine, conditions inside Russia, and the prospects for anti-war and working class resistance. Ksenia Kagarlitskaya is the daughter of well-known Marxist Boris Kagarlitsky, who was jailed by Putin for his opposition to the war in Ukraine, she initiated the Freedom Zone, which is an activist campaign that supports Russian political prisoners. Ilya Budraitskis is a Russian theorist, activist and member of postal media, a left-wing anti-war platform founded after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. His collection of essays, dissonance among dissidents, ideology, politics, and the left and post-Soviet Russia was published by Verso in 2022. Both are in exile from Russia.
They, along with hundreds
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