MOSCOW, September 13 (RIA Novosti) - A Russian opposition leader said Saturday that accepted opposition parties in Russia had ceased to oppose the Kremlin and it would take time for a true opposition to emerge.
Kremlin critic Garry Kasparov was speaking during a meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club, which this year is focused on the topic of the global geopolitical revolution of the early 21st century and Russia's role in it.
Kasparov, the leader of the United Civil Front and a world-famous chess player, drew the public's attention to the fact that Yabloko, SPS and the Communist Party, generally believed to be opposition parties, are no longer such.
"It is very important to recognize that in the framework of the current political system the time of these ‘opposition' parties has gone. In my opinion, they can no longer be called opposition parties," Kasparov said, adding that "they have accepted the Kremlin's rules of play."
Kasparov said a true opposition, not sponsored by the Kremlin, is just emerging in Russia, and it is a very slow process.
