Spy death: Russian Lawmakers blame tycoon

AP ^

[Omega Man II]

Spy death: Russian Lawmakers blame tycoon

NDTV Correspondent

Saturday, November 25, 2006 (Moscow):

Pro-Kremlin lawmakers and state-controlled television networks point the finger for the death of former spy Alexander Litvinenko at a prominent Putin enemy in UK - tycoon Boris Berezovsky.

Though Litvinenko's deathbed message has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Legislators seconded a top Putin aide's suggestion that Litvinenko's death in a London hospital on Thursday was part of a plot against Russia.

They claimed that Berezovsky, a major critic whose asylum in Britain has enraged the Kremlin, was involved in the killing.

"The death of Litvinenko for Russia, for the security services - means nothing," Valery Dyatlenko, said on state-run Channel One television, contending that neither the Kremlin nor Russia's intelligence agencies would have reason to kill him.

"I think this is another game of some kind by Berezovsky."

Berezovsky amassed a fortune in dubious privatisation deals after the 1991 Soviet collapse and became an influential Kremlin insider under President Boris Yeltsin.

But Berezovsky fell out of favour with Putin and fled for Britain in 2000 to avoid a money laundering probe which he said was politically motivated.

He has been a thorn in Putin's side for years, assailing him for backtracking on democracy and accusing Russian security services of organizing 1999 apartment-building bombings that helped stoke support for the Chechen war.

That claim can be seen as aimed personally against Putin, a former Federal Security Service chief, who ascended to the presidency in part on the strength of the popularity of his hardline stance on Chechnya as Prime Minister at the time. (AP)

[kinoxi]

Pro-Kremlin lawmakers and state-controlled television networks point the finger

I'm sure they did.

[GSlob]

Nah. It was Borat's work. And do not forget the nefarious bicyclists, numismatists and philatelists.

[gusopol3]

maybe Putin can just use O.J.'s title for his book.

[Hoplite]

Poisoned with Polonium?
The kids these days.

[ozzymandus]

I like to think that if I lived in Russia, I would be smart enough not to accuse dictator (I mean president) Putin of murder.

[kinoxi]

Who lived in russia here?

[kinoxi]

I have no idea what that was supposed to mean.
:)

[dennisw]

And what possible motivation would Berezovsky have for offing this guy? Vlad Putin's assertions are absurd

[dennisw]

You no Trotsky but you don't care when Islam hits away at Europe with an axe. BTW I understand Trotsky was killed by an ice axe (mountaineering axe) into his head. In Mexico city by assassins sent by Stalin

[ozzymandus]

Well, I assumed the Russian legislators who refused to blame Putin live in Russia. Just a WAG ;>)

[ozzymandus]

Not sure what you mean, but Putin just sold $700 million worth of missiles to Iran.

[piasa]

Didn't Putin say he wasn't running for office again?

If that's the case why would he care about this guy?

Or is Putin going to try to stay in office indefinitely?

[dennisw]

Once he leaves Russian Premiership Vlad Putin intends to become the power behind the throne. This has been posted mnay times

[dennisw]

Not sure what you mean, but Putin just sold $700 million worth of missiles to Iran

Anti aircraft missiles to deter a US or Israel strike on Iran's nuclear factories

[LegendHasIt]

My first (and current) thought of the implications of this death and the apparent manner of death is an intentional message to the ‘cognoscenti’:

“Putin, the 'big bad' of the KGB is BACK (if he ever left) and will kill you in any of thousands of rare and unpleasant ways if you cross him”.

Polonium? Man that is an expensive way to kill someone. Last price I heard on the stuff back in the 70s was well over $100,000 an ounce (or per gram? memory hazy on that point.) Anyway, there are less than three ounces of that stuff produced per year, world wide, and according to news reports, there was a lot of it spread around Litvinenko's haunts.

Its not something you can find laying around in the cabinet under the sink; I can’t find it listed in my 3000 page catalog from a chemical-elemental material supplier who sells darn near EVERYTHING, no matter how rare, dangerous and expensive. You have to have access to particle accelerators or nuclear labs to steal the stuff, and licences out the kazoo to purchase it... Only a couple of legitimate non-research industrial uses for it.

Yep, if there really is polonium involved, I’d lay money that Putin is DIRECTLY involved, and he wants people in the right places to understand that who, how and why it happened, and that he isn't playing games.

[LegendHasIt]

Seriously, this is the equivalent of being stoned to death with fist sized diamonds. That just doesn't happen unless your killer is incredibly powerful and really intends to make a point with your death.

[Dallas59]

This is so outright obvious. But nobody is protesting...no mass demonstrations...nothing.

[OldFriend]

Message sent, message received.

This man was investigating the murder of the woman journalist who was investigating Putin's nefarious deeds.