Putin killed my husband: widow
LONDON — Nine years after former KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko drank radioactive tea at a London hotel, an inquiry into his death ended Friday with his widow claiming President Vladimir Putin ordered the killing — and Moscow accusing Britain of politicizing the probe.
Litvinenko, who fled to London in 2000 and became a fierce critic of Putin, died three weeks after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium-210. On his deathbed, he accused Putin of ordering his assassination — a claim Moscow denies.
His death continues to be an irritant in worsening relations between the two countries. And despite a six-month inquiry that heard from 62 witnesses, putting anyone on trial for the killing remains a remote prospect.
Outside London’s Royal Courts of Justice, Marina Litvinenko said the inquiry had revealed that “my husband was killed by agents of the Russian state ... and this could not have happened without the knowledge and consent of Mr. Putin.”
Her lawyer, Ben Emmerson, called Putin a “tin-pot dictator” who had ordered the “liquidation” of an enemy.
The Russian Foreign Ministry slammed the inquiry, saying that “despite its name it is not transparent, either for Russia or for the general public.” It said Moscow had been “actively assisting” the probe until it began to fear it could be used for political ends.
Emmerson said Moscow had attempted “to frustrate and manipulate” the investigation from the start, by refusing to cooperate and raising objections.
British police have accused Dmitry Kovtun and Andrei Lugovoi — the two Russians Litvinenko met for tea — of carrying out the killing, sponsored by elements in the Kremlin. Both deny involvement, and Moscow refuses to extradite them.
That stalemate lasted for years, and investigations into the death were delayed by Britain’s reluctance to disclose secret evidence about Litvinenko and his links to U.K. spy agencies.