Boris Johnson Asked For Evgeny Lebedev To Skip City Hall Security In 2015 Boris Johnson

Johnson’s friendship with Lebedev has come under scrutiny in recent weeks, including the prime minister’s decision to award the Russian-owned media owner, despite concerns expressed by intelligence and security services. Official documents show that Johnson had a meeting in his office at the City Hall in 2015 with Lebedev and Mikhail Piotrovsky, the director of the State Hermitage Museum of Russia, who has ties to Vladimir Putin. According to an email released under the Freedom of Information Act, Johnson’s office described the two men as “VIPs” and added: “The mayor specifically requested that they not be asked to go through airport security.” No meetings or written notes of the meeting were kept, but a report to City Hall later stated that “they were discussing the cultural prospects in London”. Labor said Johnson’s request was a sign that “his careless attitude towards British security is deep inside his bones”. Lebedev, owner of the Independent and Evening Standard and son of a former KGB spy, has always denied any involvement with the Kremlin and condemned Russia’s war in Ukraine. Piotrowski is a prominent figure in Russian culture, as director of the State Hermitage since 1990, and in politics as one of 75 people invited by Putin to help rewrite Russia’s constitution so that he can remain in power. He was a member of the Duma, was awarded the Friendship Medal by Putin in 2016 and was a member of the board of state television Channel 1. Piotrowski was a strong supporter of the recapture of Palmyra, Syria, by Russia from the Islamic State, saying it was important for cultural preservation. In 2016, Johnson praised Putin for his “ruthless clarity” in providing military support to Bashar al-Assad’s troops to save the city’s archeology. In 2015, Britain’s relationship with Russia was already strained by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and the annexation of Crimea, but Russia had not reached its current status quo in the West, with political channels remaining open. A Johnson spokesman did not comment on the 2015 meeting with Lebedev or why he had called for the normal security arrangements to be lifted. “As mayor of London, Boris Johnson met with a wide range of relevant people, media and businesses, all of whom were declared required,” he said. “This government and the Conservative Party have strongly called on Russia to be accountable at all times and have been some of the harshest critics in the world, from our response to the Salisbury poisoning to the strong action we have taken since Putin’s recent illegal invasion of Ukraine”. Asked what the meeting was about and why the guests were allowed to bypass security, Lebedev said: “It is news to me that the top curator in Russia has been allowed to bypass security checks. “It seems that the mayor of London is offering a courtesy to a very tall figure in the art world and trying to make him feel as comfortable as possible, leaving him with a metal detector and connecting him.” Angela Rayner, Labor’s deputy leader, said it was a “pattern of behavior dating back years.” “It puts personal friendships above the public interest.” Labor also claimed that Johnson “had never been serious about taking the necessary steps to eliminate Putin’s influence in Britain.” Contact the team securely: create a Protonmail account and email us at [email protected] or use Signal Messenger or WhatsApp to send a message to +44 7824 537227. The controversy has gripped Lebedev’s ilk since it was revealed that the House of Lords nomination committee had expressed concern about his rise and asked Downing Street to reconsider it in March 2020, following advice from British intelligence. The appointment was completed only after he was re-submitted amid pressure from Downing Street. The chairman of the committee that announced Lebedev’s appointment has now been called to testify in parliament when he returns to parliament next week. Paul Bew, an Irish historian, will appear before parliament’s public administration committee on Wednesday to answer what his chairman described as “very serious questions” about Downing Street’s role in the appointment. “We will hold a hearing on the role of the House of Lords nomination committee with Lord Beau,” said Conservative chairman William Rag in a letter to Rainer. He said members would raise some of the issues related to Lebedev’s promotion at the meeting. The spies had told the commission that the matter concerned Lebedev’s father, Alexander Lebedev. During the late Cold War, Lebedev Sr worked secretly at the Soviet embassy in London. His real employer was the KGB foreign intelligence service and he left in 1992 with the rank of colonel. Johnson has known Evgeny Lebedev for years. The prime minister was a regular guest at a party hosted by Lebedev in London and at his renovated castle in Perugia, Italy. After such an event in April 2018, while Johnson was Secretary of State, he was seen at a nearby airport allegedly looking as if he had fallen asleep in his clothes, having apparently attended without his usual security details.

title: “Boris Johnson Asked For Evgeny Lebedev To Skip City Hall Security In 2015 Boris Johnson " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-16” author: “Morgan Goya”

Johnson’s friendship with Lebedev has come under scrutiny in recent weeks, including the prime minister’s decision to award the Russian-owned media owner, despite concerns expressed by intelligence and security services. Official documents show that Johnson had a meeting in his office at the City Hall in 2015 with Lebedev and Mikhail Piotrovsky, the director of the State Hermitage Museum of Russia, who has ties to Vladimir Putin. According to an email released under the Freedom of Information Act, Johnson’s office described the two men as “VIPs” and added: “The mayor specifically requested that they not be asked to go through airport security.” No meetings or written notes of the meeting were kept, but a report to City Hall later stated that “they were discussing the cultural prospects in London”. Labor said Johnson’s request was a sign that “his careless attitude towards British security is deep inside his bones”. Lebedev, owner of the Independent and Evening Standard and son of a former KGB spy, has always denied any involvement with the Kremlin and condemned Russia’s war in Ukraine. Piotrowski is a prominent figure in Russian culture, as director of the State Hermitage since 1990, and in politics as one of 75 people invited by Putin to help rewrite Russia’s constitution so that he can remain in power. He was a member of the Duma, was awarded the Friendship Medal by Putin in 2016 and was a member of the board of state television Channel 1. Piotrowski was a strong supporter of the recapture of Palmyra, Syria, by Russia from the Islamic State, saying it was important for cultural preservation. In 2016, Johnson praised Putin for his “ruthless clarity” in providing military support to Bashar al-Assad’s troops to save the city’s archeology. In 2015, Britain’s relationship with Russia was already strained by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and the annexation of Crimea, but Russia had not reached its current status quo in the West, with political channels remaining open. A Johnson spokesman did not comment on the 2015 meeting with Lebedev or why he had called for the normal security arrangements to be lifted. “As mayor of London, Boris Johnson met with a wide range of relevant people, media and businesses, all of whom were declared required,” he said. “This government and the Conservative Party have strongly called on Russia to be accountable at all times and have been some of the harshest critics in the world, from our response to the Salisbury poisoning to the strong action we have taken since Putin’s recent illegal invasion of Ukraine”. Asked what the meeting was about and why the guests were allowed to bypass security, Lebedev said: “It is news to me that the top curator in Russia has been allowed to bypass security checks. “It seems that the mayor of London is offering a courtesy to a very tall figure in the art world and trying to make him feel as comfortable as possible, leaving him with a metal detector and connecting him.” Angela Rayner, Labor’s deputy leader, said it was a “pattern of behavior dating back years.” “It puts personal friendships above the public interest.” Labor also claimed that Johnson “had never been serious about taking the necessary steps to eliminate Putin’s influence in Britain.” Contact the team securely: create a Protonmail account and email us at [email protected] or use Signal Messenger or WhatsApp to send a message to +44 7824 537227. The controversy has gripped Lebedev’s ilk since it was revealed that the House of Lords nomination committee had expressed concern about his rise and asked Downing Street to reconsider it in March 2020, following advice from British intelligence. The appointment was completed only after he was re-submitted amid pressure from Downing Street. The chairman of the committee that announced Lebedev’s appointment has now been called to testify in parliament when he returns to parliament next week. Paul Bew, an Irish historian, will appear before parliament’s public administration committee on Wednesday to answer what his chairman described as “very serious questions” about Downing Street’s role in the appointment. “We will hold a hearing on the role of the House of Lords nomination committee with Lord Beau,” said Conservative chairman William Rag in a letter to Rainer. He said members would raise some of the issues related to Lebedev’s promotion at the meeting. The spies had told the commission that the matter concerned Lebedev’s father, Alexander Lebedev. During the late Cold War, Lebedev Sr worked secretly at the Soviet embassy in London. His real employer was the KGB foreign intelligence service and he left in 1992 with the rank of colonel. Johnson has known Evgeny Lebedev for years. The prime minister was a regular guest at a party hosted by Lebedev in London and at his renovated castle in Perugia, Italy. After such an event in April 2018, while Johnson was Secretary of State, he was seen at a nearby airport allegedly looking as if he had fallen asleep in his clothes, having apparently attended without his usual security details.