Sochi 2014 to bring back together Russian and British intelligence services
The Russian and British intelligence services will resume contacts aborted in 2006 and work together to provide security for the 2014 Winter Games, president Vladimir Putin and UK’s prime minister, David Cameron have agreed.
UK will be providing “limited” support to ensure safety
of athletes and guests during the Sochi 2014 winter games, Cameron
said at the media-conference after the negotiations in the Olympic
capital concluded late on Friday.
"We both want the Sochi Games to be a safe and secure
Games,” he added.
No details of how this cooperation will look like have yet been
revealed, but Britain surely has a lot of experience to share in
the sphere.
The London Olympics, it hosted in 2012, went on without any serious
incidents, thanks to over 20,000 police and military personnel
providing security during the event.
The Russian and British intelligence services have aborted
cooperation 6 years ago, following Moscow's refusal to extradite
Andrey Lugovoy, whom the UK suspects of involvement in the
poisoning death of former FSB officer, Aleksandr Litvinenko, which
occurred in London the same year.
"Security service cooperation was suspended," Dmitry Peskov, Putin’s spokesman, stressed as RBK Daily quoted him on Saturday. "It was frozen on the initiative of the British side, but nevertheless we are satisfied with their readiness to cooperate in the interests of ensuring the safe and peaceful organization of the Olympic Games in Sochi.”
After the talks, Putin and Cameron went on a helicopter tour of the venues being prepared for the Sochi Games’ kickoff on February 7, 2014.
The aerial excursion included landing at the Fisht Olympic Stadium, which was designed by the British architects firm, Populous, and constructed with the assistance companies from the UK.
The 40,000-strong venue won’t see any sporting action during the
Games as it’ll be used to host the opening and closing ceremonies.
According to Cameron, more than 50 British companies are currently
participating in the Sochi Olympics construction projects.
