British diplomat and FSB colonel in strange Moscow accident

Andrew Sheridan

British newspaper The Daily Mail has published a brief account of a bizarre accident in Moscow, involving a British diplomat and a senior official of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB). Andrew Sheridan, Deputy Director of the British Council’s office in Moscow, apparently hit an FSB agent while driving a car issued with official diplomatic tags. The Russian agent, who was named by the FSB only as “Alexander T.” trains intelligence recruits “for frontline duties, including securing borders”. He suffered a broken leg and head injuries. The British Council, which is sponsored by the British Foreign Office, is often seen as the educational and cultural extension office of British diplomatic missions around the world. It has long been involved in a diplomatic dispute with the Russian government and security services, in the context of which Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, recently described it as “a nest of spies”. The Daily Mail article reminds that the Council’s branch offices in St. Petersburg and Yekaterinburg were recently shut down by the Russian authorities “over alleged tax irregularities”. The British Foreign Office described the incident as “an unfortunate traffic accident [with nothing] more [to be read] into it”. The FSB have yet to officially comment on the subject. [IA]