Monday, January 23, 2006

Russia accuses British diplomats of spying, using a fake rock.

 Why does this strike me as LOL funny?
 
Guess I have been reading the news too much, again.

Russia's intelligence services accused British embassy officials on Monday of spying in Moscow after state television said the diplomats had used a transmitter in a fake rock to try to secure state secrets.

"Yes. I can confirm that everything that was shown was true and based on our information," a spokesman for FSB state security service told Reuters.

"The diplomats were shown to be involved in activities that were incompatible with their diplomatic status," he said, using diplomatic jargon to refer to spying.

Russian state television on Sunday broadcast video footage of what it said were British diplomats spying through a transmitter in an imitation rock on a Moscow street and then downloading classified information from it.

TV said at least part of the footage had been shot in autumn last year.

The program said one of the embassy officials had been authorizing regular payments to Russian non-governmental organizations.

Earlier this month President Vladimir Putin signed into law legislation on registering NGOs which Western critics say will seriously curb the activities of one of the few areas of public expression that remains outside Kremlin control.

In London, the Foreign Office said: "We are concerned and surprised at these allegations. We reject any allegation of improper conduct in our dealing with Russian NGOs.

"It is well known that the UK government has financially supported projects implemented by Russian NGOs in the field of human rights and civil society.

"All our assistance is given openly and aims to support the development of a healthy civil society in Russia."

A British embassy spokesman, reached for comment, declined to say whether the diplomats named in the broadcast were still in Russia.

(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge)

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