tangent4ronpaul
03-23-2013, 04:18 PM
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/882fe3d6-93e3-11e2-b528-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2OP0O5Zpz
Boris Berezovsky, the exiled Russian tycoon once known as the “Godfather of the Kremlin,” has been found dead at his home in the UK. There was no immediate information on how Berezovsky, who was 67 and who had lived in the UK since 2000, died.
Russian news reports said Berezovsky had committed suicide, though that is likely to be scrutinised heavily in the next few days. Berezovsky had been the target of assassination attempts, and an associate, Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB officer, was killed by polonium poisoning in 2006, with many pointing the finger at the Kremlin.
Demyan Kudryavtsev, a close friend of Berezovsky’s family, told Russian news agencies the Kremlin critic’s heart had stopped. “There are no external signs of suicide. There are no traces of needles, there are no signs he took any pills. It’s not clear what caused his heart to stop.”
Berezovsky had long been a wanted man in Russia. A former Kremlin power broker who came to prominence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the rise of Boris Yeltsin, he helped Mr Putin rise to power in the late 1990s.
But his fortunes declined dramatically after Mr Putin established himself and he became a dedicated opponent of Russian president for more than a decade.
He was connected to some of the most mysterious Russian events of the past two decades, including the start of the second Chechen war in 1999, and the launch of Vladimir Putin’s political career that year as well. His death, as well as his life, is likely to be shrouded forever in conspiracy theories.
Berezovsky had remained politically active in Russia despite being in exile, and had funded many opposition media and political projects in Moscow, apparently seeking revenge on Mr Putin.
“He fed half of Moscow from his own hand” wrote Sergei Dorenko, a former television news journalist who used to work for Berezovsky’s channel ORT, on his Facebook page.
Berezovsky’s fortunes took a turn for the worse last year when he lost a high-profile legal action against fellow Russian businessman and Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich. He claimed he had been intimidated by Mr Abramovich into selling shares in Russian oil company Sibneft.
Berezovsky had been claiming £3bn ($4.7bn) in damages. However, the court ruled in Mr Abramovich’s favour, with a judge delivering a scathing judgment of Berezovsky, saying he had been an “inherently unreliable” witness.
The legal costs of that case are thought to be upwards of £100m, and Berezovsky also faced expenses from other court battles and a divorce.
Friends of Berezovsky said he had been mentally and financially crushed by the legal ruling in his case against Mr Abramovich.
His lawyer, Alexander Dobrovinsky said that Berezovsky “was in a very poor state. He lost this court case in London, he borrowed a lot of money, he was selling paintings and was almost living in poverty at the end of his life. I think he just could not take it.”
Alexander Goldfarb, a close associate of Berezovsky, told the FT: “He was not a young man. He was not really ill. But he was under tremendous stress. Anyone would be depressed in these circumstances.” He added that in recent months, Berezovsky “wouldn't see anyone.”
Alexander Temerko, former vice-president of Yukos and also a Russian exile in London, said Berezovsky’s death marked the end of an “entire epoch”
“He was a serious fighter but he was not always successful, and his heart I think could not bear it. This was a person who loved life so crazily and then got so disappointed in its unfairness. This was a person who fought all his life, but at some point he just got tired of fighting.
“I don’t think he died at anyone’s hands. I think his heart just could not hold out. he did not see anyone for a long time. He really suffered over what happened [in the Abramovich case].”
Dmitry Peskov, Mr Putin’s spokesman was quoted on Interfax saying that Mr Berezovsky has made a very curious approach to Mr Putin recently. “Some time ago, maybe two months, Berezovsky sent Vladimir Putin a handwritten letter, in which he admitted to making many mistakes, and asked Putin’s forgiveness for this and asked Putin for help in returning to the motherland.”
-t
Boris Berezovsky, the exiled Russian tycoon once known as the “Godfather of the Kremlin,” has been found dead at his home in the UK. There was no immediate information on how Berezovsky, who was 67 and who had lived in the UK since 2000, died.
Russian news reports said Berezovsky had committed suicide, though that is likely to be scrutinised heavily in the next few days. Berezovsky had been the target of assassination attempts, and an associate, Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB officer, was killed by polonium poisoning in 2006, with many pointing the finger at the Kremlin.
Demyan Kudryavtsev, a close friend of Berezovsky’s family, told Russian news agencies the Kremlin critic’s heart had stopped. “There are no external signs of suicide. There are no traces of needles, there are no signs he took any pills. It’s not clear what caused his heart to stop.”
Berezovsky had long been a wanted man in Russia. A former Kremlin power broker who came to prominence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the rise of Boris Yeltsin, he helped Mr Putin rise to power in the late 1990s.
But his fortunes declined dramatically after Mr Putin established himself and he became a dedicated opponent of Russian president for more than a decade.
He was connected to some of the most mysterious Russian events of the past two decades, including the start of the second Chechen war in 1999, and the launch of Vladimir Putin’s political career that year as well. His death, as well as his life, is likely to be shrouded forever in conspiracy theories.
Berezovsky had remained politically active in Russia despite being in exile, and had funded many opposition media and political projects in Moscow, apparently seeking revenge on Mr Putin.
“He fed half of Moscow from his own hand” wrote Sergei Dorenko, a former television news journalist who used to work for Berezovsky’s channel ORT, on his Facebook page.
Berezovsky’s fortunes took a turn for the worse last year when he lost a high-profile legal action against fellow Russian businessman and Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich. He claimed he had been intimidated by Mr Abramovich into selling shares in Russian oil company Sibneft.
Berezovsky had been claiming £3bn ($4.7bn) in damages. However, the court ruled in Mr Abramovich’s favour, with a judge delivering a scathing judgment of Berezovsky, saying he had been an “inherently unreliable” witness.
The legal costs of that case are thought to be upwards of £100m, and Berezovsky also faced expenses from other court battles and a divorce.
Friends of Berezovsky said he had been mentally and financially crushed by the legal ruling in his case against Mr Abramovich.
His lawyer, Alexander Dobrovinsky said that Berezovsky “was in a very poor state. He lost this court case in London, he borrowed a lot of money, he was selling paintings and was almost living in poverty at the end of his life. I think he just could not take it.”
Alexander Goldfarb, a close associate of Berezovsky, told the FT: “He was not a young man. He was not really ill. But he was under tremendous stress. Anyone would be depressed in these circumstances.” He added that in recent months, Berezovsky “wouldn't see anyone.”
Alexander Temerko, former vice-president of Yukos and also a Russian exile in London, said Berezovsky’s death marked the end of an “entire epoch”
“He was a serious fighter but he was not always successful, and his heart I think could not bear it. This was a person who loved life so crazily and then got so disappointed in its unfairness. This was a person who fought all his life, but at some point he just got tired of fighting.
“I don’t think he died at anyone’s hands. I think his heart just could not hold out. he did not see anyone for a long time. He really suffered over what happened [in the Abramovich case].”
Dmitry Peskov, Mr Putin’s spokesman was quoted on Interfax saying that Mr Berezovsky has made a very curious approach to Mr Putin recently. “Some time ago, maybe two months, Berezovsky sent Vladimir Putin a handwritten letter, in which he admitted to making many mistakes, and asked Putin’s forgiveness for this and asked Putin for help in returning to the motherland.”
-t