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UPDATE...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1747745/posts

"Putin wanted Blair to gag poisoned spy"
The Sunday Times ^ | December 3, 2006 | David Cracknell, Mark Franchetti and Jon Ungoed-Thomas

Posted on 12/03/2006 1:25:58 AM PST by MadIvan

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "THE Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has expressed his anger at Britain’s failure to gag Alexander Litvinenko in the final hours of his life, the cabinet has been told.

Margaret Beckett, the foreign secretary, told ministers that the Russian government had “taken exception” to the poisoned former spy’s deathbed letter accusing the Putin regime of murdering him.

This weekend a potential suspect — Andrei Lugovoi — admitted he had been contaminated with the radioactive poison polonium-210 but insisted: “I’ve been framed.”

Beckett, who spoke to her Russian counterpart before Thursday’s cabinet meeting, said the Russians had “seemingly failed to understand” that Litvinenko was under police supervision rather than in custody.

Amid signs that his death could cause a diplomatic row, Tony Blair concluded the cabinet meeting by saying “the most important issue” was likely to be Britain’s long-term relationship with Moscow.

Another minister present said: “It caused some alarm that this case is obviously causing tension with the Russians. They are too important for us to fall out with them over this.”

Putin’s aides see Litvinenko’s letter, in which he described the Russian president as “barbaric and ruthless”, as a carefully orchestrated public relations stunt, timed to coincide with the leader’s appearance at the Russia-European Union summit in Helsinki.

Foreign Office officials yesterday confirmed the Russians had raised the issue of Litvinenko’s letter with Beckett and British diplomats. Until now, the government has admitted only that the Russians had agreed to assist Scotland Yard with its inquiries.

John Reid, the home secretary, told the cabinet “not to make assumptions” about Litvinenko’s death, pointing out that the former spy had been “involved with” organised crime as well as the KGB, Chechens and exiled Russian oligarchs.

With more than 200 people tested for suspected radiation contamination and 3,000 calls handled by NHS Direct, Patricia Hewitt, the health secretary, said there was a risk the NHS could be “overloaded”.

Reid said the contamination by polonium-210 — a highly radioactive isotope, which has so far been found at 12 sites in London — could have come from more than one person."