National Journal: A former member of Russia’s parliament says Putin’s regime will collapse soon, and he has a parliament-in-exile waiting for that moment.

“I don’t want any other country to be involved in regime change. I want this to be a cause for Russians,” Ilya Ponomarev said during a meeting organized by The Christian Science Monitor in Washington, D.C., where he was visiting to gin up support for his cause in the U.S. Congress. “What will be after Putin? It will be us. The Congress of People’s Deputies.”

Alexander Osovtsov, a 66-year-old former Moscow city council member and a Russian Jewish Congress executive vice president, said it’s unnecessary for the Congress of People’s Deputies to unite the entire Russian opposition. Osovtsov previously worked with Khodorkovsky’s foundation "Open Russia", but he is now a member of the Congress of People’s Deputies. “We are more radical. We openly support the Russian groups fighting against Putin’s army. That’s not OK for some other [members of the Russian opposition],” Osovtsov said. “I don’t think we have to unite everyone. That would be unrealistic.”

Ivan Fomin, a fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis, said the Congress of People’s Deputies has the potential to become a valuable platform for Russians who oppose the war in Ukraine. “One of the strengths of the congress is that it is comprised of individuals who at some point were elected as representatives of Russian citizens. So this institution can have at least some basis to claim to legitimately represent Russians,” Fomin said. “I think the congress could become relevant in case of the collapse of state institutions in Russia. In such a situation, the congress could be a convenient counterpart for Ukraine, which would dialogue with it when there is no longer a functioning central government in Russia.”

Getting support from Washington, however, could prove even more difficult than uniting the Russian opposition behind a broad plan for a post-Putin Russia. The Biden administration is anxious not to appear to be supporting regime change abroad. Backing Russian militias that aim to take down the Putin regime is more risk than the Biden team is willing to take. Members of Congress are open to meeting Ponomarev, but none were willing to speak publicly about their interactions with him and his colleagues.

“It’s moving slowly but still moving,” Ponomarev said of his interactions with Congress. He said he expects an event related to the Congress of People’s Deputies will take place on Capitol Hill after the August recess.