July 16, 2007

Four Russian Diplomats Expelled From U.K.

Angry with Moscow's lack of cooperation in a transcontinental murder probe, the British government plans to boot four yet-to-be-named Russian diplomats. BBC News reports that the targeted Russians may be intelligence officers.

Moscow has refused to hand over ex-KGB spy Andrei Lugovoi, who is suspected in the radiation poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko last November. Litvinenko is also a former spy. After becoming a vocal critic of the Russian government, he fled to Britain and was granted asylum.

A spokesman for Russia's foreign ministry said the U.K. "should clearly realise that such provocative actions masterminded by the British authorities will not be left without an answer and cannot but entail the most serious consequences for Russian-British relations."

Meanwhile, a top U.K. official said the British government was also taking a second look at its dealings with Moscow. Prosecutors have charged Lugovoi with murder, and have requested his extradition from Russia in order to bring him to trial.

Posted at 12:57 PM
Posted to: Europe, Russia, U.K.
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