29 August 2003 06:20
Hoon, not Blair, may have to resign over Kelly case - Russian analyst
"The biggest threat that the British cabinet is facing is the sacking of the defence minister, but not [British Prime Minister] Tony Blair's resignation", political analyst, director of the centre for strategic studies Andrey Piontkovskiy told Ekho Moskvy radio, commenting on Blair's evidence at the Hutton inquiry. Piontkovskiy believes that Blair's interrogation [as received] will not affect the case. "No new crimes have been found out in the investigation", he said. "The phrase for which Blair is blamed [as received], which was added to the secret services dossier, is that Saddam Husayn could activate his chemical and bacteriological weapons within 45 minutes". "This was done to make the document look more convincing", Piontkovskiy stressed. "This is a serious violation of the standards of British political life, this is why the British prime minister is giving an explanation in public".
[Ekho Moskvy news agency] |
RUSSIA IN FACTS
