Britain and Russia could be heading for another row  after multi-millionaire Yevgeny Chichvarkin, seen as a foe of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, fled to the UK to escape arrest in Moscow.  Chichvarkin is accused of kidnapping and extortion, which he claims are political charges.   Chichvarkin most notably founded mobile phone network Euroset (also referred to as Yevroset) in 1997, but had sold his share of the business to a pro-Kremlin businessman last year. Since then he has been involved in the political party Right Cause, on behalf of the business class in Russia.

Russia will now demand his arrest and extradition from Britain. British tabloid The Daily Mail notes that “all previous demands for other Russian tycoons have been refused by 
London courts on the grounds that the businessmen cannot expect a fair trial in Russia”.