Litvinenko poisoning: Britain to expel four Russian diplomats

Britain is to expel four Russian diplomats in response to Moscow's refusal to hand over the ex-KGB agent accused of murdering Alexander Litvinenko, Foreign Secretary David Miliband said today.

He told MPs it was the "appropriate response" to Russia's " extremely disappointing" decision not to send chief suspect Andrei Lugovoy to the UK to face trial.

Cooperation with Moscow on "a range of issues" would also be reviewed, he announced.

Mr Litvinenko, a former Russian security agent who fled to Britain, died in a London hospital last November from a fatal dose of the extremely rare radioactive isotope polonium 210.

Mr Miliband said four had been chosen "in order to send a clear and proportionate signal to the Russian government about the seriousness of this case".

Not only had Mr Litvinenko suffered a "horrifying and lingering death in front of his family" but hundreds of others had been put at risk of radiation as well.

And the police had "assembled a significant body of evidence" against Mr Lugovoy.

"Given the importance of the issue and Russia's failure to cooperate to find a solution, we need an appropriate response," he said in a Commons statement.

The expulsions were part of a package of actions, he said, including international agreements meaning Mr Lugovoy could be extradited to the UK if he travelled abroad.

Changes had also been made to visa practices.

The Foreign Secretary said Moscow's hardline stance suggested it "has failed either to register how seriously we treat this case or the seriousness of the issues involved despite lobbying at the highest level".

He concluded: "The measures I am announcing are intended to uphold key individual rights and vital principles of independent judicial process.

"On that basis, we will continue to work with the government of Russia for mutual benefit."

Mr Litvinenko was a fierce critic of the Russian regime and had close links with a network of expatriate dissidents, both in the UK and New York.

The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced in May that it would seek the extradition of Lugovoy to face trial for Mr Litvinenko's murder.