Cold war of words continues
Political row between Russia and UK escalates as David Miliband accuses Russia of "cold war" behaviour
Thursday, 17, Jan 2008 01:57
The UK government has intensified its verbal attack on Russia by accusing the Kremlin of "cold war" behaviour.
David Miliband told MPs the actions of the Russian authorities towards the British Council were "reprehensible".
The council today bowed to pressure by agreeing to close its offices in St Petersburg and Yekaterinburg after being accused of tax fraud by prosecutors.
The British Council, a non-governmental organisation set up to foster cultural understanding, strenuously denies the Russian claims but said it had no choice but to temporarily close its offices outside of Moscow due to fears over its employees' safety.
Martin Davidson, the chief executive of the British Council, said Russian actions had "made it impossible" for the council to continue its work.
Mr Miliband told the Commons today the Federal Security Service (FSB) had interviewed 20 Russian council staff, ten of which were visited at home last at night.
"Questioning ranged from the institutional status of the British Council to personal questions about the health and welfare of family pets," the foreign secretary explained, dubbing the behaviour as "blatant intimidation".
He accused the Russian government of violating the Vienna Conventions and the UK-Russia 1994 bilateral agreement on cultural cooperation, as well as using the British Council as a "political football".
"Russia has failed to show any legal reasons under Russian or international law why the British Council should not continue to operate. Russia has also failed to substantiate its claims that the British Council is avoiding paying tax," Mr Miliband continued.
"The British Council is in fact registered for tax in Russia and has complied with all requests of the tax authorities in respect of its activities.
"Therefore, instead of taking legal action against the council, they have resorted to intimidation of the council's staff."
Mr Miliband revealed the European Union would be releasing a statement on the row later today, while the Canadian government has also expressed its support for the British Council.
Tensions between London and Moscow have steadily risen since the fatal poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko in 2006.
Russian authorities have blocked the extradition of murder suspect Andrei Lugovoi, now an MP, while both countries have suspended diplomatic visas in tit-for-tat expulsions.
The row between the two countries comes as Russia's relationship with the west is complicated by disagreements over Iran's nuclear ambitions, the future independence of Kosovo and American missile deployments in eastern Europe.
Mr Miliband told the Commons that the British Council episode raised "serious questions" about Russia's observance of international law and urged the international community to be "more cautious" in its dealings with Moscow.