Kara-Murza was sentenced to 25 years in Siberia for spreading disinformation about the Russian military. He was released in 2024 as part of a prisoner swap. In an interview, he criticized Western leaders for believing in a 'myth' about Putin being a reformer, asserting that Putin's true intentions were clear from the beginning. He recalled Putin's unveiling of a memorial to KGB chief Yuri Andropov, who was involved in suppressing dissent. Kara-Murza warned that Putin uses flattery to manipulate leaders like Trump.