Litvinenko Inquiry: 25 Years on From the Cold War, Espionage Endures

Claims made by former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko as he lay dying of radioactive poisoning in a London hospital bed have been backed by public inquiry. Litvinenko accused Russian agents of putting him there and went to his grave pointing the finger at the Kremlin.

Background: Robert Owen, chairman of the public inquiry into the death of murdered Russian ex-KGB spy Alexander Litvinenko, at the Royal Courts of Justice in central London on Jan. 20, 2015. Litvinenko, who fled to Britain in 2000, died in 2006 after drinking tea laced with radioactive polonium-210 while meeting two Russian men—one a former KGB officer—at the Millennium Hotel in London's Grosvenor Square. (John Stillwell/AFP/Getty Images) Top left: A file photo of Alexander Litvinenko, author of "Blowing Up Russia: Terror From Within," at his home in London o May 10, 2002. Russia’s transition from a Kremlin-controlled economy to a free market in the 1990s brought on a wave of contract killings as criminals, entrepreneurs, and corrupt officials tried muscle each other out of lucrative businesses. The death of 67-year old Boris Berezovsky, which remains unexplained, has revived fears that the assassins that have long stalked oligarchs and opposition figures back in Russia have been making their home in the U.K. AP Photo/Alistair Fuller

Claims made by former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko as he lay dying of radioactive poisoning in a London hospital bed have been backed by public inquiry. Litvinenko, author of “Blowing Up Russia: Terror From Within,” accused Russian agents of putting him there and went to his grave pointing the finger at the Kremlin.

Litvinenko had become a critic of president Vladimir Putin and had fled to Britain, where he worked for MI6.

The inquiry into his death, conducted by British Judge Robert Owen, found that the murder was executed under the “probable” direction of the FSB—Russia’s intelligence and security service. Going further than many had expected, he also said the killing was “probably approved” by president Vladimir Putin himself.

The inquiry into Alexander Litvinenko's death found that the murder was executed under the 'probable' direction of Russia's intelligence and security service.