Vladimir Putin is poised to murder “high-profile” Russian critics in Britain with politicians “at risk”, according to one of the Kremlin’s best-known enemies. The despotic Russian leader has a list of at least 12 UK targets, claimed multi-millionaire Bill Browder, and has been emboldened by the muted response to the death of prominent opposition politician Alexei Navalny.
The tycoon-cum-activist Mr Browder told the Mirror that the Kremlin is set to sanction a “killing spree” which will target “all enemies in the UK”.
He added that the West has no choice but to demonstrate it won’t be pushed around or face the prospect of a repeat of the 2018 Novichok attack in Salisbury.
Russian spies Ruslan Boshirov and Alexander Petrov fled Britain after poisoning Alexei Skripal and his daughter Yulia. However, a British woman, Dawn Sturgess, 44, lost her life.
Financier Mr Browder, who has written about his experiences inside Russia, claimed Putin was a “murderous gangster” who simply “kills people” who stand in his way.
He told the publication: “The fact he would kill the most popular and prominent opposition politician in plain sight without fear of repercussion says that people who are opposing Putin in Russia and abroad are in much more serious risk of assassination.
“The killing of Alexei Navalny has shown Putin has lost all restraint and that he will embark on a major international killing spree which will include against all his enemies in the UK. I believe there are at least a dozen people here at risk and they will focus on high-profile ones. Politicians are at risk.
“Putin is a murderous gangster and he kills people who stand in the way of whatever his objectives are. Unless we wake up, we’re going to find ourselves in World War Three. He’s declared war on us and we haven’t responded.”
He added that the West has got to “get tough” and “do some dramatic things” to demonstrate there is a “real cost” to his aggression.
Mr Browder went on to say that it wasn’t an exaggeration to classify Russia as being run by a criminal organisation headed up by murderers, thieves and torturers.
