Alleged killer of Litvinenko /Guardian/
Alleged killer of Litvinenko to start new career in politics·
Far-right party practically guarantees him a seat· As a Duma member ex-spy would enjoy immunity
Luke Harding in MoscowMonday September 17, 2007The Guardian
The former KGB spy accused of murdering the Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko said yesterday he intended to embark on a new career as a politician and would stand for parliament in the Russian election in December.
Andrei Lugovoi said he would run as a candidate for the Kremlin-supporting ultra-nationalist Liberal Democratic party. The party confirmed it had placed him second on its party list - a move that virtually guarantees him a seat as an MP.
As a member of Russia's Duma (lower house), Mr Lugovoi would automatically enjoy immunity from prosecution. In reality this makes no difference since the Kremlin has categorically refused Britain's request to extradite Mr Lugovoi to the UK.
Britain now faces the prospect of watching Mr Lugovoi present himself in parliament as a heroic Russian patriot doing battle against evil British spies. His decision to enter politics could hardly have been made without Kremlin approval. It comes after Vladimir Putin dismissed Britain's attempts to prosecute Mr Lugovoi as "stupidity" and "colonial thinking".
Yesterday the Liberal Democratic party's flamboyant leader, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, shrugged off Mr Lugovoi's alleged crimes. He described British charges against Mr Lugovoi as "an attempt to organise provocations against our citizens."
Mr Lugovoi is suspected of persuading Litvinenko to sip a cup of poisoned tea at a London hotel. Litvinenko ingested a large dose of radioactive polonium-210 and died three weeks later. In a deathbed statement he accused Vladimir Putin of organising his murder - denied by the Kremlin.
In July the foreign secretary, David Miliband, expelled four Russian diplomats from London in protest at the Kremlin's refusal to hand over Mr Lugovoi. All four worked for the successor organisation to the KGB, a clear signal that British authorities strongly suspect that Russian intelligence agencies had a hand in the murder.
The Kremlin responded by kicking out four British diplomats in Moscow, and with the launch of a domestic propaganda offensive, blaming Litvinenko's murder on MI6 and the Kremlin critic and exiled former oligarch Boris Berezovsky.
Mr Lugovoi has given numerous interviews insisting on his innocence. But he has failed to explain convincingly why he left a trail of polonium leading from Moscow to central London.
Mr Lugovoi's lawyer said he had filed a lawsuit against the daily newspaper Kommersant over a report which referred to Litvinenko as Mr Lugovoi's "victim".
Far-right party practically guarantees him a seat· As a Duma member ex-spy would enjoy immunity
Luke Harding in MoscowMonday September 17, 2007The Guardian
The former KGB spy accused of murdering the Russian dissident Alexander Litvinenko said yesterday he intended to embark on a new career as a politician and would stand for parliament in the Russian election in December.
Andrei Lugovoi said he would run as a candidate for the Kremlin-supporting ultra-nationalist Liberal Democratic party. The party confirmed it had placed him second on its party list - a move that virtually guarantees him a seat as an MP.
As a member of Russia's Duma (lower house), Mr Lugovoi would automatically enjoy immunity from prosecution. In reality this makes no difference since the Kremlin has categorically refused Britain's request to extradite Mr Lugovoi to the UK.
Britain now faces the prospect of watching Mr Lugovoi present himself in parliament as a heroic Russian patriot doing battle against evil British spies. His decision to enter politics could hardly have been made without Kremlin approval. It comes after Vladimir Putin dismissed Britain's attempts to prosecute Mr Lugovoi as "stupidity" and "colonial thinking".
Yesterday the Liberal Democratic party's flamboyant leader, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, shrugged off Mr Lugovoi's alleged crimes. He described British charges against Mr Lugovoi as "an attempt to organise provocations against our citizens."
Mr Lugovoi is suspected of persuading Litvinenko to sip a cup of poisoned tea at a London hotel. Litvinenko ingested a large dose of radioactive polonium-210 and died three weeks later. In a deathbed statement he accused Vladimir Putin of organising his murder - denied by the Kremlin.
In July the foreign secretary, David Miliband, expelled four Russian diplomats from London in protest at the Kremlin's refusal to hand over Mr Lugovoi. All four worked for the successor organisation to the KGB, a clear signal that British authorities strongly suspect that Russian intelligence agencies had a hand in the murder.
The Kremlin responded by kicking out four British diplomats in Moscow, and with the launch of a domestic propaganda offensive, blaming Litvinenko's murder on MI6 and the Kremlin critic and exiled former oligarch Boris Berezovsky.
Mr Lugovoi has given numerous interviews insisting on his innocence. But he has failed to explain convincingly why he left a trail of polonium leading from Moscow to central London.
Mr Lugovoi's lawyer said he had filed a lawsuit against the daily newspaper Kommersant over a report which referred to Litvinenko as Mr Lugovoi's "victim".
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