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Putin to honour British sub rescuers in London
Russian President Vladimir Putin was honouring a team of British rescuers who saved the crew of a stranded Russian mini-submarine during the final day of a brief visit to London. Putin, who was also holding talks centred on trade and anti-terrorism with Prime Minister Tony Blair, was to present the five rescuers with awards in a ceremony at Downing Street. In August, the British team operating a specialised Scorpio remote-controlled vehicle managed to free the Russian submersible from the sea bed, cutting it free from nets in which it had become tangled. The seven-man crew had spent three days trapped 190 metres (620 feet) below the surface off the Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia's far east, and had only a few hours of oxygen supplies left. The Royal Navy team leader, Commander Ian Riches, was to receive Russia's Order for Maritime Services along with two experts from the company which operated the rescue vehicle. Two other Britons involved in the operation were being presented with the Order of Friendship. Putin arrived in London late Monday ahead of talks the next morning with Blair, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, and EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso. Wednesday's bilateral talks with Blair were set to focus on trade, notably energy supplies, and co-operation over anti-terrorism measures. Blair's office said that following the talks, Putin would become the first foreign leader to visit the government's Cobra complex, the top-security base in central London where the response to terrorist attacks and other emergencies is co-ordinated. "He will be the first foreign leader to visit Cobra and have the opportunity to hear about how we handle various emergencies and plan civil contingencies," a Downing Street spokesman said.
British trade with Russia's emerging economy is growing rapidly, in large part thanks to heavy investments by British oil companies in the booming Russian energy sector. With North Sea oil and gas supplies running low, ways of boosting Russian gas deliveries have become all the more important to Britain. Speaking to BBC radio from London, where he is accompanying Putin, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov insisted that Britain and other EU nations could be sure of Russian energy supplies. "The best guarantee is the record. And the record is that Russia has never failed on its obligations, on its commitments, on its contractual obligations to supply gas and oil to its partners overseas," he said. At a joint press conference with Putin on Tuesday, Blair hailed ties with Russia, and said these should now be taken to "a new and more intense level". However, differences remain, notably anger over Britain's failure to extradite Akhmed Zakayev, a leading Chechen separatist representative given political asylum. The row was raised by Putin on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Lavrov said. "He reminded (Blair) about our position on so-called new political emigres, and he expressed the hope that recent initiatives by Prime Minister Blair ... would certainly make us much more vigilant against those who incite terror," he said. "And that's what we believe Mr Zakayev is doing here." Putin was scheduled to depart for home later Wednesday.
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