Kasparov announced the decision by video link to participants at the event, Bild reported. He said security service staff had strongly recommended he not come to Berlin, judging the trip an unjustified risk. He gave no details on whether the services knew of specific assassination plans or whether the advice was general.
"You may have seen reports that Russia is trying to kill me," Kasparov told those attending the event.
According to him, Europe has effectively become a "playground" for Vladimir Putin, which allows Russian security services to threaten him on European territory. Kasparov warned that other people could be in danger in the future, including members of European politicians' families.
In September, the Spanish newspaper El Mundo reported, citing its sources, that Russian security services had spent several months planning to kill Kasparov in the United States. According to the publication, he was warned about a possible assassination attempt last summer. Those reports have not been officially confirmed.
The FBI has previously said it uncovered a Russian network that, for payment, was preparing assassinations in the United States of Russian opposition figures who support Ukraine. El Mundo reported that Kasparov was one of the possible names on the list.