Russian chess grandmaster Garri Kasparov, one of the strong critics of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has outlined conditions that he said could lead to the overthrow of the Russian leader in a “palace coup”. According to him, the Russian public and state elites must understand that the war is lost, and together with growing social and economic dissatisfaction, it will create the right foothills, wrote the news server Business Insider. Steps leading to Putin’s downfall CNN presenter Paula Reid asked Kasparova whether dissatisfaction with Putin’s leadership could grow in Moscow at a time when military losses in Ukraine and stronger anti-Russian sanctions are on the rise. Kasparov replied that over time, dissatisfaction with the Kremlin was likely to intensify, and he outlined a series of steps that could lead to Putin’s downfall. “First, the Russian public and Russian elites must understand that the war is lost,” Kasparov said. “The bad news coming from Ukraine is urging more people to oppose the regime as economic conditions deteriorate.” “So a military defeat in Ukraine, a socio-economic revolt, and you have the right conditions for a palace coup,” Kasparov added. “Because many members of Putin’s inner circle will be looking for a scapegoat – and it’s always the dictator who’s to blame for all the failures.” “Pretends to win” For Putin, according to Kasparov, failure in the war in Ukraine is out of the question. He attributes this to Putin’s efforts to spread the power and “aura of invincibility” precisely so that he does not become the target of his “disillusioned fathers” and “enraged crowd” of Russian citizens. “For a life dictator, defeat in the war is devastating,” Kasparov said. “It’s a matter of political survival and, in many cases, physical survival. That’s why he has to pretend to win the war.” Kasparov ended his chess career in 2005 and became one of the most prominent representatives of the anti-Putin opposition. He was nominated by the United Civic Front as a candidate for the 2008 presidential election. However, Kasparov, who now lives in New York, eventually announced that he had failed to run due to government obstruction, making it impossible to hold the necessary formal nomination congress. In November 2014, Kasparov likened Putin’s “one-man dictatorship” to Adolf Hitler’s government. In early March, he called on the world powers to throw Russia “back to the Stone Age” because of the invasion of Ukraine.