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Putin implicated in fatal poisoning of former KGB officer at London hotel Putin implicated in fatal poisoning of former KGB officer at London hotel
(about 3 hours later)
LONDON — Russian President Vladimir Putin likely approved the fatal poisoning of a former KGB operative-turned-British intelligence agent at a posh London hotel, according to a highly anticipated British inquiry released Thursday. LONDON — Gaunt and frail, his organs succumbing to the cruelly destructive power of radioactive poisoning, Alexander Litvinenko lay in a London hospital bed in November 2006 and identified the man responsible for his impending demise: Vladimir Putin.
The findings — nearly a decade after Alexander Litvinenko succumbed to the effects of the radioactive polonium slipped into his cup of green tea at London’s Millennium Hotel — are sure to raise tensions between London and Moscow and possibly sharpen the focus on other suspicious deaths among Putin’s foes. Nearly a decade later, an exhaustive inquiry by a British judge concluded on Thursday that the dying former KGB operative was probably right. For the first time, the Russian president was officially implicated in a murder that seemed plucked from the pages of a Cold War spy novel, but actually played out in the bar of a posh hotel in 21st century London.
Theresa May, Britain's home secretary, announced from the floor of the House of Commons that Britain would summon the Russian ambassador to express "profound displeasure" over Russia's "blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law." The victim: an outspoken Kremlin critic who had defected to Britain, joined the payroll of British intelligence and accused Putin of vices ranging from corruption to pedophilia. The killers: a pair of assassins who, the report found, were almost certainly acting on orders from the Russian spy service, the FSB, and who left a trail of radioactive evidence strewn across London. The weapons of choice: one tea cup, and one massive dose of a rare nuclear isotope, polonium.
[Litvinenko’s dying words: “A price” will be paid for silencing me]
The conclusions instantly set off a furious diplomatic row, with British and Russian officials accusing each other of treachery and deceit. British Prime Minister David Cameron called the findings of “state-sponsored” murder in his capital city “absolutely appalling." A Kremlin spokesman, without apparent irony, said the report would “further poison the atmosphere.”
But there was a limit to how much damage the report could do to relations that are already badly frayed. The inquiry's findings come at a highly sensitive time, as the West seeks Russian cooperation in ending the Syrian war. The British government’s response to the report reflected that delicate dynamic, with officials lashing out verbally but backing away from the sort of retaliation that could truly bite in Moscow. Cameron acknowledged as much, saying that Britain needed to engage with Russia on Syria, but would do so "with clear eyes and a very cold heart.”
Britain immediately summoned the Russian ambassador to express "profound displeasure" at what Home Secretary Theresa May called Moscow's "blatant and unacceptable breach of the most fundamental tenets of international law."
But speaking from the floor of the House of Commons, May beat back suggestions from opposition lawmakers that the government go further. She argued that Britain had already retaliated against Moscow in 2007 when preliminary inquiries into the killing suggested the hand of the Russian state.
"It is in no sense business as usual" between the Britain and Russia, she said, adding that Cameron would discuss the matter with Putin "at the next available opportunity."
[Full report: Russian President Vladimir Putin implicated in fatal poisoning of former KGB operative][Full report: Russian President Vladimir Putin implicated in fatal poisoning of former KGB operative]
She said more serious consequences would be studied. Opposition lawmakers criticized her for a meek response that did not reflect the gravity of apparent state-sponsored assassination on British soil. That cautious stance is likely to disappoint Litvinenko's widow, who called Thursday for Britain to expel Russian intelligence officials and enact new sanctions in response to the killing of her husband. Speaking before the government's response became public, Marina Litvinenko said her husband's dying belief had been vindicated.
The Kremlin quickly dismissed the report, with a spokesman saying it would “further poison the atmosphere of our relations.” “I am of course very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed — when he accused Mr. Putin of his murder — have been proved true,” she told reporters outside the Royal Courts of Justice in central London.
Litvinenko's widow called Thursday for Britain to expel Russian intelligence officials and enact new sanctions in retaliation for the killing of her husband, an outspoken critic of Putin. But it is highly unlikely that his killers will face justice any time soon for an assassination that a British parliamentary committee has described as "a miniature nuclear attack on the streets of London."
The inquiry's findings come at a highly sensitive time, as the West seeks Russian cooperation in ending the Syrian war. The British government, meanwhile, may not want to add fresh hostility to an already troubled relationship. British officials on Thursday reiterated requests for Russia to extradite the two accused killers, Andrei Lugovoi and Dimitry Kovtun. Yet even with the new findings, Russia does not extradite its citizens, and Lugovoi has been rewarded in the years since the Litvinenko killing with a seat in parliament.
The inquiry found that two men deliberately poisoned Litvinenko, and were almost certainly working on behalf of the Russian intelligence agency FSB. The two named assassins, Andrei Lugovoi and Dimitry Kovtun, remain in Russia, and the Russian government has rebuffed British attempts to secure their extradition. Lugovoi, a former KGB officer, on Thursday called the allegations against him "absurd."
[The stealthy, nefarious way an ex-KGB officer was murdered in London]
Lugovoi, a former KGB officer, is now a member of the Russian parliament. On Thursday he called the allegations against him "absurd."
“These are lies, total lies, nonsense,” he told the Ekho Moskvy radio station.“These are lies, total lies, nonsense,” he told the Ekho Moskvy radio station.
Kovtun, now a businessman, described the charges as based on “falsified and fabricated evidence,” the Interfax news agency reported.Kovtun, now a businessman, described the charges as based on “falsified and fabricated evidence,” the Interfax news agency reported.
The inquiry's findings, set out over 328 pages, include that Putin had a personal motive for wanting Litvinenko dead, and that the president would likely have had to approve a high-stakes operation to assassinate the former KGB operative on British soil. Britain on Thursday announced it had seized the assets of the two men, although that was believed to be a largely symbolic gesture. The lawyer for Litvinenko's widow, Ben Emmerson, acknowledged that the two would not stand trial until "the final fall of Vladimir Putin."
The assassination has been described by a British Parliamentary committee as "a miniature nuclear attack on the streets of London." [The stealthy, nefarious way an ex-KGB officer was murdered in London]
The inquiry into Litvinenko's death was led by high court judge Robert Owen and was set up at the direction of the British government. The final report, the product of more than three years of work and set out over 328 pages, suggests that Putin had a personal motive for wanting Litvinenko dead because the defector had become such a fierce critic.
Although the inquiry stops short of conclusively blaming Putin — noting the opaque nature of Kremlin politics — it finds that there is "strong circumstantial evidence that the Russian State was responsible for Mr. Litvinenko's death." And citing the high-stakes nature of an operation to assassinate a former KGB officer on British soil, it finds that the operation would likely not have gone ahead without Putin's direct approval.
"The FSB operation to kill Mr. Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr. [Nikolai] Patrushev [then head of the FSB] and also by President Putin," the report concludes.
In Moscow, a spokesman for Putin, Dmitry Peskov, said that “such quasi-investigations, as we have today, can only further poison the atmosphere of our relations.”In Moscow, a spokesman for Putin, Dmitry Peskov, said that “such quasi-investigations, as we have today, can only further poison the atmosphere of our relations.”
Before his death, Litvinenko had been assisting Spanish intelligence agencies with their investigations into Russian crime networks. Litvinenko was also on the payroll of Britain's main foreign intelligence service, MI6. Having worked in counterintelligence for the KGB and its successor, the FSB, Litvinenko was fired in 1998 after holding a news conference in which he was sharply critical of the agency and, by implication, its then-director: Putin.
Litvinenko himself had accused Putin of orchestrating the assassination, signing a death-bed statement that alleged the Russian president had ordered Russian intelligence to carry out the killing. Before the poisoning, Litvinenko had publicly accused Putin of everything from corruption to pedophilia. He defected to Britain two years later and spent years on the payroll of its main foreign intelligence agency, MI6. Litvinenko also assisted Spanish intelligence agencies with their investigations into Russian crime networks.
The findings follow an extensive, multi-year review that was led by British high court judge Robert Owen, and was set up at the direction of the British government. In addition to his covert work, Litvinenko was a prolific writer, publishing books and articles that were unsparing in their criticism of Russia's security services generally and of Putin in particular. One article even accused the Russian president of pedophilia.
Although the inquiry stops short of conclusively blaming Putin — citing the opaque nature of Kremlin politics — it concludes that there is "strong circumstantial evidence that the Russian State was responsible for Mr. Litvinenko's death." And it finds that the operation would likely not have gone ahead without Putin's direct approval. Litvinenko had become a British citizen just weeks before his death, a move that he had told friends would protect him from the reach of his jilted former Russian comrades. "Now they will not be able to touch me," he told one, according to Thursday's report.
"The FSB operation to kill Mr. Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr. [Nikolai] Patrushev [then head of the FSB] and also by President Putin," the report states. But in fact, Litvinenko remained very much in the sights of Russia's security services. Troops even used a picture of his face for target practice, the report found.
Litvinenko was a British citizen at the time of his death, and had spent years on the payroll of MI6, following his decision to defect from Russia in 2000.
Following the report's release, Marina Litvinenko, the defectors, called on British Prime Minister David Cameron to expel Russian intelligence officials from Britain and for Russia to be slapped with new economic sanctions.
[British-Russian tussle over case stretches back nearly a decade][British-Russian tussle over case stretches back nearly a decade]
“I am of course very pleased that the words my husband spoke on his deathbed — when he accused Mr. Putin of his murder — have been proved true,” she said, speaking to reporters outside of the Royal Courts of Justice in central London. Lugovoi and Kovtun have long been suspected of carrying out Litvinenko's murder. But Thursday's report lays out a comprehensive case linking them to the killing. According to the report, the two men lured Litvinenko to the Pine Bar at the Millennium Hotel on Nov. 1, 2006, ostensibly to discuss a business deal, and served him a cup of cold green tea.
Alex Goldfarb, a friend of Litvinenko and author of “Death of a Dissident,” a book about the case, told the BBC: “I think it’s a very proper and fair finding because nobody in the Russian hierarchy would dare to order such a murder without Mr. Putin’s approval.” Traces of polonium 210 were later found in many of the places the alleged killers had visited: The bar's bathroom, their hotel rooms, a board room where they conducted an earlier meeting, a soccer stadium where they watched a game and the plane that ferried them back to Russia. But the highest concentrations were discovered at the table where the three men were sitting, and in and around the tea pot.
The Liberal Democrats, Cameron's former coalition partner, backed Litvinenko’s widow's call for travel bans and economic sanctions for those involved in his death. The polonium, the inquiry finds, was manufactured in a nuclear reactor, suggesting the role of a government rather than criminal networks.
Party leader Tim Farron said: “A U.K. citizen was killed on the streets of London with polonium. It was an attack on the heart of Britain, our values and our society. I call for EU travel bans, asset freezes and coordinated action to deal with those who committed this evil assassination." The report conclusively rules out suggestions that Litvinenko poisoned himself, or that he was poisoned by others, as Russian officials have suggested.
But Tony Brenton, the British ambassador to Russia at the time of Litvinenko’s poisoning, said that while the British government should react “quite strongly” to the murder of a British citizen in Britain, “tearing up relations with Russia is almost certainly not in our national interest.”
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today program: “We have quite important other fish to fry with the Russians. They are very important in carrying the Iran de-nuclearization through, they are absolutely crucial in sorting out the mess in Syria.”
Even with the new findings, the suspected assassins — Lugovoi and Kovtun — are almost certainly not to be extradited. Russia does not extradite its citizens, and Lugovoi has been rewarded in the years since the Litvinenko killing with a seat in parliament.
The lawyer for Litvinenko's widow, Ben Emmerson, said he did not believe there was any chance of the two men standing trial until "the final fall of Vladimir Putin."
Britain on Thursday announced it had seized the assets of Lugovoi and Kovtun, although that was believed to be a largely symbolic gesture.
May, the Home Secretary, deflected suggestions Thursday that Britain should take stronger action.
The government, she said, had enacted sanctions and expelled officials years ago, when preliminary investigations revealed Russian authorities' likely involvement in the killings. "It is in no sense business as usual" between the Britain and Russia, she said, adding that the prime minister, David Cameron, would discuss the matter with Putin "at the next available opportunity."
Andy Burnham, a spokesman for the opposition Labour Party on home affairs, accused the government of "pulling its punches," and suggested a more far-reaching response -- such as a travel ban modeled after the U.S. Magnitsky Act -- was needed.
[Litvinenko’s dying words: “A price” will be paid for silencing me]
Lugovoi and Kovtun had long been suspected of carrying out the murder.
But Thursday's report lays out a comprehensive case linking them to the killing. According to the report, the two men lured Litvinenko to the Pine Bar at the Millennium Hotel on Nov. 1, 2006, and served him a cup of green tea laced with a massive dose of the radioactive substance polonium 210.
Traces of the isotope were later found in many of the same places where the two alleged killers had visited: The hotel's bathroom, their hotel room, a board room where they conducted an earlier meeting and the plane they traveled aboard.
The report conclusively rules out suggestions that Litvinenko deliberately poisoned himself, or that he was poisoned by others.
"The scientific evidence," said Owen, the judge, at a Thursday press conference, "demonstrates conclusively that Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned by Andrei Lugovoi and Dimitry Kovtun.""The scientific evidence," said Owen, the judge, at a Thursday press conference, "demonstrates conclusively that Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned by Andrei Lugovoi and Dimitry Kovtun."
But Owen said the two killers had no "personal reason" to kill Litvinenko. "All the evidence points in one direction, namely that when they killed Mr. Litvinenko, they were acting on behalf of someone else."But Owen said the two killers had no "personal reason" to kill Litvinenko. "All the evidence points in one direction, namely that when they killed Mr. Litvinenko, they were acting on behalf of someone else."
Litvinenko became seriously ill later on the night of the 1st, which was the sixth anniversary of his arrival in Britain. He suffered massive internal organ failure, and died at a London hospital 22 days later. Litvinenko became seriously ill later on the night of Nov. 1, 2006, the sixth anniversary of his arrival in Britain. He died at a London hospital 22 days later.
The report compared the Litvinenko killing and other murders of Kremlin critics.
Just weeks before Litvinenko was poisoned, the journalist Anna Politkovskaya, his friend and sometime collaborator in investigating shady Russian government dealings, was gunned down outside her Moscow apartment. The Kremlin or its allies have long been suspected in the killing.
Birnbaum reported from Moscow. Karla Adam in London contributed to this report.Birnbaum reported from Moscow. Karla Adam in London contributed to this report.
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