Billionaire could cause problems - Ukranian minister
Ukraine’s interior minister warned today that the arrival of Russia’s self-exiled tycoon Boris Berezovsky in the country would create an insurmountable problem for this ex-Soviet republic.
Berezovsky – wanted by Moscow on fraud charges – has said he plans to move to Ukraine, and the Ukrainian media have speculated that Berezovsky might time his arrival with Saturday’s visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“The Interior Ministry will face a problem that cannot be solved” if Berezovsky is allowed into the country, Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko said in Kiev.
He said the situation presented a dilemma because Russia and Ukraine have an extradition agreement, but Ukraine also has a duty to protect political refugees.
Billionaire Berezovsky, a fierce political opponent of Putin, has been charged with embezzlement of funds from Aeroflot, Russia’s top air carrier. He has rejected the charges as politically motivated and has received political asylum in Britain.
Moscow, however, has informed Kiev that it expects Berezovsky to be handed over if he arrives in Ukraine.
Berezovsky has a Russian passport, but he also has refugee documents issued from Britain under the name Platon Elenin.
