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UK expels four Russian diplomats
UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown's new government ordered the
expulsion of four Russian diplomats Monday over the Kremlin's
refusal to extradite the key suspect in the fatal poisoning of a
former KGB spy -- Britain's first use of the sanction in more than
10 years.
Russia quickly threatened retaliation, marking a new low point in
Britain's relations with Moscow under President Vladimir
Putin.Alexander Litvinenko died November 23 in a London hospital
after ingesting radioactive polonium-210. In a deathbed statement,
the 43-year-old accused Putin of being behind his killing.British
prosecutors have named Russian businessman and former KGB agent
Andrei Lugovoi as the chief suspect. Litvinenko said he first felt
ill after meeting Lugovoi and business partner Dmitry Kovtun at a
London hotel.
But Russia has refused to extradite Lugovoi, saying its constitution
prevents that.Brown, speaking in Berlin, said, "I have no apologies
for the action that we have taken, but I do want a resolution of
this issue as soon as possible.""When a murder takes place, when a
number of innocent civilians were put at risk ... when an
independent prosecuting authority makes it absolutely clear what is
in the interest of justice and there is no forthcoming cooperation,
then action has to be taken," the British leader said.
Foreign Secretary David Miliband told lawmakers in the House of
Commons that "the Russian government has failed to register either
how seriously we treat this case or the seriousness of the issues
involved, despite lobbying at the highest level and clear
explanations of our need for a satisfactory response."Russia
immediately threatened to retaliate.
"London's position is immoral," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman
Mikhail Kamynin said.
"They should understand well in London that the provocative actions
conceived by British authorities will not go unanswered and cannot
fail to produce the most serious consequences" for bilateral
relations, he said.
Lugovoi said Monday the British decision "once again confirms that
the Litvinenko affair had a political subtext from the very
beginning," the Interfax news agency reported.
Russia formally rejected an extradition request a week ago, and
British prosecutors then spurned an offer from Moscow to try Lugovoi
there.
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