Asylum decision suggests that US patience with Putin is wearing thin

[HuckleB]

Asylum decision suggests that US patience with Putin is wearing thin

http://www.chechentimes.org/en/press/?id=25839

"When the US granted political asylum to Alyona Morozov last month, it gave no explanation for its decision. But the reason is not hard to discern. Ms Morozov accused Russia’s secret services of involvement in a series of apartment block bombings in Moscow and elsewhere in September 1999 which killed 246 people. Making such an allegation is potentially harmful to health.

Chechen separatists were officially blamed for the attacks. They led to the launch by Vladimir Putin, then Russia’s prime minister, of the second Chechen war. Mr Putin’s tough response impressed voters. He won the presidency the following March.

Ms Morozov, aged 28, whose mother was killed in their Moscow apartment, demanded an international investigation. She suspects that the FSB, successor to the KGB, masterminded the bombings to boost support for Mr Putin, himself a former KGB agent.

Mr Putin has denied any official involvement. "It is immoral even to consider such a possibility," he said. But Ms Morozov is not alone in her suspicions.

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