He
was a British subject, assassinated on British soil, by a foreign power,
employing the most radioactive substance known to man. Wars have been started
over lesser provocations. It is inconceivable an operation of that magnitude
could be executed without the direct consent of Russian autocrat Vladimir
Putin. The mere acquisition of Polonium 210 would require coordination at the
highest levels of government. Yet, we can confidently ascribe responsibility to
Putin and his henchmen, because Litvinenko himself worked with Scotland Yard to
solve his own murder during his final hours. The high stakes investigation and
Russian’s attempts to cover-up the truth are conclusively revealed in the
documentary-special, Hunting the KGB Killers, directed by Chris Malone, which starts streaming on Acorn TV
tomorrow.
Litvinenko
has been closely linked with Chechen dissidents, but his real role in the FSB
(the renamed KGB) is often conveniently overlooked. According to Litvinenko
(whose credibility has been tragically established beyond reasonable doubt), he
was promoted to a secret division of the FSB responsible for assassinating the
Kremlin’s political and economic rivals. Obviously, it is still in business.
Ill-advisedly, Litvinenko had called a meeting with the newly elected Putin,
hoping the president would halt such abuses. Instead, he had to defect to the
UK with his wife Marina and their son Anatoly, who address Litvinenko’s
assassination on-camera for the first time in KGB Killers.
Lead
investigator DI Brian Tarpey takes viewers through his inquiry, step-by-step,
starting with a meeting with an unnamed MI5 agent, who turned out to be
Litvinenko’s handler. With his identity confirmed, the dying Litvinenko willingly
submitted to a “living autopsy” to determine the agent of his poisoning. When
Polonium-210 was determined to be the cause of his impending death, it
unleashed a hard target search through the London establishments he frequented,
as well as a very real public health scare. Tarpey’s team even journeyed to
Russia, where they were stonewalled and also poisoned with more benign
gastrointestinal bacteria.
Although
its running time clocks in just under an hour, KGB Killers is packed with stunning information. Frankly, it is an
outrage that the world is not more outraged over this crime. Russian apologists
and stooges have used a lot of disinformation and red herrings to distract the
western media from the fundamental issues. This was a British subject, who was
cooperating with western intelligence and law enforcement agencies to expose
Russian crime syndicates linked to Putin and his oligarch cronies.
The
respect Tarpey and his colleagues have for Litvinenko comes through loud and
clear. The details on their dogged pursuit of the murderers, Anjdrey Lugovoy
(now a member of Russia’s parliament and hence immune from prosecution) and
Dmitri Kovtun, is also highly instructive. Although the iconic photo of the emaciated
Litvinenko is often shown during KGB
Killers, Malone also uses dramatic re-enactments of the whistle-blower’s
final days. Documentary purists might have mixed feelings on such a strategy,
but it must be conceded Andrew Byron (a bit-player in Wonder Woman) is an eerie dead-ringer for Litvinenko. Eddie Marsan’s
narration is also totally professional and gives the film some name-recognition
(if star-power is too strong a term).
KGB Killers is a seamless
chronicle that will shock viewers with the full magnitude and viciousness of
the FSB’s crimes under Putin. Yet, it also keeps the human element in
perspective through the memories of the surviving Litvinenkos and the Scotland
Yard investigators. It is a film all Americans should watch, starting with the
president.
Let’s
be honest, the West’s triumph over Communism during the Cold War was also the
greatest political victory in the history of the right/left divide. Yet, Trump
seems determined to retroactively sabotage that victory, by openly courting the
Soviets’ successor in spirit and oppressive practice. He is not just compromising
American national security. He is also jeopardizing the legacy of the American
conservative movement. Ronald Reagan, William F. Buckley, and Barry Goldwater
must be weeping bitter tears in their graves.
