The Russian billionaire daring to speak out about Putin

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Boris Mints, one of the richest people in Russia, spoke out against the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

Most of the high-profile people in the country are silent over the war.

Mr Mints said that they are all afraid.

The content on Russian news channels is controlled by the Kremlin, which has a reputation for cracking down on critics. In the country, unauthorized protests have been banned in the last few years.

"Any person who openly criticizes Putin has grounds to worry about personal safety," Mr. Mints said.

He said in an interview that he had no intention of living in a bomb shelter.

In Russia, the "usual way" to punish a business owner for their tolerance towards the regime was to open a criminal case against them.

He said that the criminal cases would affect both the business owners and their family and employees.

"Any business leader who doesn't agree with Putin is seen as a threat as he or she may be able to finance opposition or cultivate protest - as such, those people are seen as Putin's enemies and, therefore, as enemies of the state," he said.

Mr Mints was the first person to speak out against the policies of President Putin after the annexation of the peninsula.

Mr Mints felt that he needed to leave Russia for the UK in order to escape the growing political opposition in the country.

President Putin was a fierce opponent of Mr. Nemtsov. Since Mr Putin came to power, his murder has been the most high-profile political killing. The authorities are not involved in any way.

Mr Mints said that his former investment company O1 Group found itself in an open conflict against the Central Bank of Russia.

He said that it was clear that one should leave the country immediately.

The Kremlin is currently taking legal action against him.

Thebravest step available for wealthy Russians who dislike Mr Putin is to go silently into exile, according to Mr Mints.

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When they made separate calls for peace in Ukraine, two of the country's most prominent tycoons didn't criticize Mr Putin directly.

Mr Mints said that the invasion of Russia was the most tragic event in recent history.

Hitler invaded Poland in 1939.

Mr Mints, the former chairman of one of the largest pension asset managers in Russia, said that the war was the result of madness and hunger for power of a single person.

The Kremlin has been contacted by the British Broadcasting Corporation.

Two days after Mr Putin became acting president of Russia, Mr Mints spoke to him for the first time.

Mr Mints, who worked under former Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s, was interested in discussing his plans to reform local government.

Mr Putin didn't argue or comment on my suggestions. He said that Putin fired him the next day.

He knew that Mr Putin was miles away from what the previous administration had in mind.

Mr Mints left politics and started a stock broker.

Unlike other Russian businessmen who have been linked to the Kremlin, Mr Mints has not been sanctioned by the UK government.

His name was on a list released by the US. 114 of the names were associated with the government or key businessmen.

Mr Mints was listed as an "oligarch" by the other 96 because he was worth more than $1 billion at the time.

After making Forbes' world billionaires list in 2017, the father-of-four dropped off.

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He denied that he was an industrialist.

He said that not every Russian businessman is pro-Putin. In Russia, the term means a business leader who is very connected to Putin and most of their wealth is dependent on co-operation with the Russian state.

He said that Russia also has an aluminum mine in the center. There are 140 million people in this country. The needs of people there are similar to those in the west.

Mr Mints doesn't want to go back to Russia because he feels comfortable in the UK and doesn't want to have to worry about being kidnapped.