Europe News
Brown calls situation over Litvinenko "intolerable" (2nd Roundup)
Jul 23, 2007, 13:51 GMT
London/Moscow - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown Monday described as 'intolerable' Moscow's refusal to hand over Andrei Lugovoi, deemed by Britain to be the chief suspect in the murder of ex-agent Alexander Litvinenko in London last November.
Speaking at his first news conference in Downing Street since he took office at the end of June, Brown said it was 'very important' that Moscow understood the seriousness of the situation over the Litvinenko case.
'We want the Russian authorities to recognize, even at this stage, that it is their responsibility to extradite for trial the Russian citizen who has been identified by our prosecuting authorities,' said Brown.
'We cannot tolerate a situation where all the evidence is that not only was one person assassinated, but many others were put at risk,' Brown said.
In Moscow, meanwhile, prosecutors defended their refusal to extradite Lugovoi and said they had 'doubts' in Britain's justice system.
'The British side rather selectively considers certain facts and information related to Litvinenko's murder,' said Andrei Maiorov, deputy head of the department of extraordinary affairs in Russia's Prosecutor General's Office.
Russian-British tensions are high amid London's attempts to seek Lugovoi's extradition, which has already resulted in the rare step of London and Moscow each expelling four diplomats last week.
Maiorov added that Britain's evidence against Lugovoi contained 'more political than legal foundations,' Interfax reported.
Maiorov said the political issues included mention of possible motives behind Litvinenko's death.
'(Litvinenko), according to the (extradition) request, led an active battle against the work of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) and spoke critically of the current Russian authorities,' he said.
The Russian official said Lugovoi and Dmitry Kovtun, both of whom met Litvinenko the day he said he fell ill, were also victims of the poisoning by polonium-210.
'The cause of Kovtun and Lugovoi's illness could have been Litvinenko,' Maiorov said.
Kovtun and Lugovoi were said by officials after Litvinenko's death to have been treated in a Moscow hospital for radiation poisoning, but little is known about their health condition.
Maiorov's remarks came after British Foreign Secretary David Miliband called 'disappointing' the Kremlin's refusal to extradite Lugovoi, which Moscow says is unconstitutional.
'We consider unacceptable (Miliband's) statement about a lack of trust in the Russian legal system,' Russian Deputy Prosecutor General Alexander Zvyagintsev said, also in Moscow on Monday, Interfax reported.
Zvyagintsev said the extradition refusal was 'legally tested' and that it was in accordance with international extradition conventions. He further said the evidence presented against Lugovoi contained 'many contradictions and discrepancies.'
'The Russian side has more reasons to doubt the efficacy of the British legal system,' the prosecution official added, saying that London's extradition request came after Moscow informed Britain of the constitutional ban.
'It's obvious (that London) was interested in receiving the refusal,' he added.
Zvyagintsev further criticized London for refusing to extradite nine Russian citizens Moscow wants.
Among those are Akhmed Zakayev, a Chechen rebel diplomat, and Boris Berezovsky, a once-influential oligarch wanted at home on fraud charges.
Berezovsky has called for 'revolution' in Russia, a move that has angered the Kremlin.
But, Zvyagintsev said, Moscow would not consider exchanging Lugovoi for Berezovsky.
That issue, he added, 'is not being considered, nor will it be in the future.'
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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Older Talkback
page: 1
Nevermind, the Russians are a dying race - they have exactly what they deserve.
BetterDeadThanRed,
I wish you the best;)
ty, I do not live in an AIDS ridden country, where the secret services blow up apartment buildings. I do not live in a country where the biggest mass murder of is own citizens was conducted. I do not live in a country where the population is declining by about 1 million a year, lastly I do not live in a country with borders that are impossible to defend.
May God help you in a country you live in. But why would you care for a British puppets war of words? They may have their dirty purpose called 'politics' but what does it have to do with your xenophobia? Be sure, brits being sooooo pragmatic, will not let the profits from Russia to slip away ... unless properly repaid by its master.
Being a 'new-baked' if not 'half-baked' puppet, Mr. Brown & Co. could have missed the news about current status of the master's bank's account. And it seems to be far from pretty.
Besides, being a well groomed puppy, Brits where led to put their hands and noses into too many hard and hot spots at once. May be that's where the pain is.
May the fools be fooled.
Chao.
I happen to view the first act of nuclear terrorism as a serious crime. Lets be clear from day 1 Russia not Britain started to politicize this case. Russia is the source terrorism of throughout its history of terrorism against its own people, thats fine do to yourselves what you see fit, do no export it, you get what goivernment you deserve - you deserved Stalin, because of Russian's cowardice and submission to the state, little had changed, Now you have cheka running your country, it is a simply a matter of time before the more terrible repressions occur, and you brought it on yourselves, like I say you hae what you deserve, silly sovoks.
Alex - -get a life!
Britain has frredom of speech - do you in Russia, Erm...No.
YOU tend to get poisoned by your own Government (loosely termed) for speaking or thinking of speaking your mind.
The Kremlin are paranoid - why else kill one of your own citizens in a foreign Country?
You are a laughable place indeed.
What will be will be right?
Personally I further think f*** it to the Anti-Missile scheme in Poland - I think we should dozens around the coast, some in France, Germany - -wherever really.
It has NOTHING to do with Red arses what we choose to do to defend our Country - -note that word country - we ARE one.
Oh and it was mighty BIG of Russia to supply arms to the VC in Vietnam during the Vietnam War too - top choice - Result - -worked.
What the fuck is up with you people? If you had poisoned this guy in New York you would be scraping your legs up off the street with a jug - get me?
What if WE came over to Red Square and spread some radioactive shit about taking out a guy in the process?? See what I am saying?? Not nice right? Don't like it do you?
So, to be truthful here - FUCK losing face - let's get the deal done, sort the legal shit out and we can all go back to being where we should be - minding our own fucking business.
Gentlemen,
It was a pleasure to to get to know you guys better.
You trully deserve to be pinned to the flags of your respective nations to bring the real fear to the rest of the World.
Too bad your leaders skipped this opportunity and instead spend a fortune for all this military junk. They could have saved a fortune... and you could get all the deserved glory.
But... there is now a solution (made in USA mind you) ... a PROZAC.
Which means, thanks God, not all is lost yet!
Do you guys know where the close-by pharmacy is?
Good to know you have a sense of humor Alex.... You need it, living a country where the average wage is just about topping $500 a month, the biggest AIDS crisis outside of subsaharan africa, one of the biggest suicide (yeah people love living in your country) in the world, a higher murder rate than USA (although Americans chose unsafe neighbors for reasonably safe government, you chose the opposite but have neither..lol), an arbotion rate the highest in the world (who would want to bring a child in to a place like that?), an economy that does not rely on its people but rather what natural rents you can extort out of the ground (mindless digging is it?). To top it off have the world biggest army and the worlds biggest military alliance sitting on your doorstep, inside your country various republics do not want to be part of your 'federation'. The Scythian defense strategy will no longer work, your Chinese allies are slowly but surely retaking the land you stole off them (your allies still teach you as the unjust barbarians...lol). You made your choice, live (or more likely you will die) with it.
Now go back to your cheka pay masters, and pray they don't put something in your tea, if you ever disagree with them..
page: 1
AlexJul 23rd, 2007 - 15:47:55
Intolerable?
Let's hope the british doctors would help the poor guy.
I am sorry for the britain which reduced itself to the expedable puppet in a great game of its master. The world is laughing while they are crying.
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