Exiled Russian billionaire Boris Berezovsky has said he is plotting the violent overthrow of President Vladimir Putin from his base in Britain, the Guardian newspaper said today. The tycoon, who fled to London in 2000 and has been granted political asylum in Britain, said in a Guardian interview that he was "already bankrolling" people close to Putin who were "conspiring to mount a palace coup." "We need to use force to change this regime," he said. "It isn't possible to change this regime through democratic means. There can be no change without force, pressure." Asked if he was effectively fomenting a revolution, he said: "You are absolutely correct." The remarks are likely to enrage the leadership in Moscow and add tension to relations between London and Moscow, already strained over the presence of high-profile Putin critics in Britain and the affair over the poisoning of former spy Alexander Litvinenko in London in November last year. -- SPA
