The Prime Minister visited Moscow this week at the invitation of President Dmitry Medvedev to increase cooperation and forge a stronger relationship between Britain and Russia. The trip aimed to increase trade and investment between the two countries, with £215 million of new deals being signed and the creation of 500 new jobs. The Prime Minister aimed to improve relations following the death of the British citizen, Alexander Litvinenko, in 2006 in London, after he was poisoned with radioactive polonium. Scotland Yard’s key suspect in the case is Mr Andrei Lugovoi, who Russia has refused to extradite to the United Kingdom to face questioning. David Cameron raised the issue of the death of Mr Litvinenko with the Russian President and maintained that links between the countries security services would not change until the matter had been resolved. The Prime Minister had earlier commented at Moscow State University that “we still disagree with you over the Litvinenko case. Our approach is simple and principled – when a crime is committed, that is a matter for the courts.”

Mary Macleod, Member of Parliament for Brentford and Isleworth, had become involved in the case because the victim’s widow is a constituent. After writing to the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary about the situation, she wanted to highlight the issue in the House of Commons. On Wednesday at Prime Minister’s Questions, Mary asked “Will the Prime Minister give us an update on his recent visit to Russia, especially in relation to the tragic murder of Mr Litvinenko, whose widow lives in my constituency? That case also caused a risk to public safety. Will the Prime Minister meet her to give her an update?”

The Prime Minister replied “My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary spoke to Alexander Litvinenko’s widow before I travelled to Moscow. Let me be absolutely clear that the British Government have not changed their view one jot about how wrong it was for that murder to take place and about how we need a proper explanation about what happened and who was responsible. We want justice for that family. We have not changed our view, but I do think it is right, at the same time, to try to build a better relationship with Russia across a whole range of issues. We have common interests in trying to grow our economies and our trade and we have common interests in working together on issues such as the Middle East peace process. I made sure when I went to Russia that I raised not just the Litvinenko case, but many other human rights cases, including the Magnitsky case, with the Russian President and others. I think that is the right way to conduct our international relations.”