Let’s say your thesis is valid that Putin would like to be our friend. Does he also have our long-term interests at heart? Or does he want to harm us, yet want to be our friend anyhow?

For what is the conceivable benefit to us (from the Russian point of view) of them buttressing Iraq, Syria and Iran, among other rogue states (some of whom have declared war on the United States)? What is the long-term benefit to us or the wider world of Russia giving Iran’s semi-licit nuclear program a large boost?

My weekend started with a mild round of viral gastroenteritis and ended with the decorating of a Christmas tree. It’s run the gamut. To make things more fun, it was a column weekend. I, of course, wrote about Tom Tancredo…….

Was ex-spy trying to sell dirty bomb?

Interesting revelation that Litvinenko himself had dabbled in the “radioactive materials” business. Combined with his affection for Chechen jihadis, it makes one wonder if he became a victim of his own enterprise. As far as I know, the deathbed conversion is still in question. His funeral will answer that question.

The radiation spy scandal took a sensational twist last night with the revelation that KGB defector Alexander Litvinenko had converted to Islam before he died.

Scotland Yard detectives are now trying to discover if he had any secret links with Islamic extremist terror groups.

Their biggest fear is that the former Soviet spy, who died of polonium-210 poisoning in a London hospital, may have been helping Al Qaeda terrorists or other extremist groups get hold of radioactive material to be used in a devastating “dirty” atom bomb.

The news comes on top of a claim by Litvinenko’s friend Mario Scaramella that the former spy helped smuggle radioactive material from Russia to Switzerland in 2000.

Litvinenko’s sympathies with Chechen rebels, seeking to break away from Moscow and create an independent Muslim state, are well known.

And when Chechen rebels were blamed for a massive bomb attack in 1999 that destroyed a Moscow block of flats with the loss of 400 lives, Litvinenko enraged Russian President Vladimir Putin with his claim that the Russian leader himself ordered the attack in a bid to damage the Chechen cause.

Counterterrorism officers will now be scrutinising any possible Muslim links which could have assisted Al Qaeda’s avowed aim to detonate a radioactive bomb in America or Britain.

Litvinenko’s conversion to Islam was a closely guarded secret and came as a complete shock to his close Russian friends in Britain.

The shock admission came from his next-door neighbour, moderate Muslim and Chechen dissident Akhmed Zakayev, who revealed: “He was read to from the Koran the day before he died and told his wife that he wanted to be buried in accordance with Muslim tradition.”

Sources tell The Telegraph that Russian agents in Britain are as active today as they were during the Cold War and that it’s unlikely that Litvinenko was assassinated by rogue KGB agents, as previously reported (hat tip: Allah). The Russian……

Politkovskaya can be described as the Russian version of Rachel Corrie.

Litvinenko was close buddies with the Chechen Islamists, and reportedly converted to Islam on his deathbed.

back to reality – Russia is not our friend, governmentally, or politically – cold war is not over in that respect.

But Russia wants to be our friend. It is us who are aggressively trying to smear them. I suggest you read some of Putin’s speeches on the kremlin.ru website.

KGB never goes away – just reforms to more acceptable form – research the history for yourself and see.

But of course. Why should the KGB go away? Russia should be able to protect themselves. Do you think the CIA would ever “go away”?

Russia more of a democracy than anyone – priceless!

It is not only priceless, but actually the truth.

You are way delusional.

Thank you. The measure of hysteria is normally the speediness with which ad hominems are thrown around. It does not bother me but instead reveals something about yourself.

However, you and others can rest easy – the mass majority will not even notice reality before it is too late.

Fortunately, this is true. The media can jump up and down as much as it wants, but in the end Europe (and America) will need Russia as an ally when the well-promoted “clash of civilizations” take place. Russians are Europeans, and equally concerned with the world’s rapid Islamification.

By the way, your first paragraph is very, very paradoxically seperated from reality – such a true inversion of logic so as to scream an absolutely total transvaluation of values in less than fifty words.

This is your view, and I disagree. Feel free to think that.

Hopefully, most of us will never have the privilege of living in your world.

We are all living in the same world. However, I choose to view matters in an objectively skeptical way, and I don’t follow the lead of the MSM propaganda without thinking. I have my own brain, thank you.

By the way, were you a Stalinist groupie or lap dog as well?

On the contrary.

Actually, you’re doing a grand job on keeping us updated. Like a said a number of days ago, this is great ‘Bond’ stuff. That Putie will be one big arsehole if Scotland Yard keeps pressing the way they are. We should have as good intel on binLaden. He would have been found probably years ago. He’s probably held up at some Haliburton stronghold other than Afghanistan I’m sure.

Anyway, these Rueskies are playing with international fire, in bed with Iran, selling them military stuff, and Putie is in a major state of a delusion of grandor. As Drudge would say “Developing…”

Even if Putin had personally signed off this assassination, I would still support him. Putin is the best and most unselfish, trustworthy leader that Russia has had in centuries. And the good thing is, the Russians know it, hence their support.

Russia is more of a democracy than the EU, which is an unelected governing body which does not even have the support of the population.

MoonbatMedia on December 3, 2006 at 5:49 AM

Alrighty, then –

back to reality – Russia is not our friend, governmentally, or politically – cold war is not over in that respect.

KGB never goes away – just reforms to more acceptable form – research the history for yourself and see.

Russia more of a democracy than anyone – priceless!

You are way delusional.

However, you and others can rest easy – the mass majority will not even notice reality before it is too late.

By the way, your first paragraph is very, very paradoxically seperated from reality – such a true inversion of logic so as to scream an absolutely total transvaluation of values in less than fifty words.

Hopefully, most of us will never have the privilege of living in your world.

By the way, were you a Stalinist groupie or lap dog as well?

Russia is more of a democracy than the EU, which is an unelected governing body which does not even have the support of the population.

this murder would have been a highly complex operation involving many people not one or two acting in isolation.”

Well there you have it. The KGB is still around and very much alive. Allow me to be one of many to proclaim it: Russia is NOT a democracy. Under Putin, it is very much the same communist nation it formerly was. Only now, the citizens of Russia live under the guise of democracy even though the government remains corrupt.

Russia: biggest spy threat to Britain The Russian intelligence services, the prime suspects behind the murder of Alexander Litvinenko, have a network of more than 30 spies operating in Britain, it can be revealed. The sophisticated ring represents the …

Even if they find out that Putin had something to do with it what are they going to do?

EnochCain on December 2, 2006 at 10:38 PM

They would ask him to apologize.

You guys need to lay off Russia, they’re our ally.
RightWinged on December 2, 2006 at 9:41 PM

LOL. Pretty solid too. Ever since Bush looked in to Putin’s eyes and saw what kind of man he was it’s just like having a brother in the Kremlin.

thedecider on December 2, 2006 at 9:56 PM

Putin is a great president. He is my hero.

Yeah, Igor sounds like someone who might have transported the Po-210 in a brown paper sack along with a bologna sandwich and a couple of chocolate chip cookies.

RedWinged Blackbird on December 2, 2006 at 8:38 PM

Igor reminds reminds me of the Igor of Van Hellsing movie who technique is crude.

That same article claims the amount of polonium that felled Litvinenko could have cost as much as £20m to acquire. Why on earth would anyone have gone to such expense to assassinate such a minor figure?

That’s £20m retail, Papi. By now, we can safely assume that D&H gets their Po210 at VladMart.

A ruthless assassin known as Igor is being hunted
You know, you couldn’t write a better spy novel, if you tried.

Probably not, but it’s possible if you try!