Russian spy: Retaliation could be painful for UK business
A crackdown on Russia's UK business ties in the wake of the spy poison revelations will hit a complex and lucrative web of interests.
Prime Minister Theresa May has promised measures against Moscow if there is no adequate explanation for the poisoning.
But she would be pushing against interests that touch UK football, members of the House of Lords, and valuable assets owned by UK companies.
Those assets include BP's 20% stake in Russian oil and gas giant Rosneft.
That's worth repeating - a FTSE 100 company owns a fifth of Russia's most valuable company, which is state controlled.
BP's chief executive Bob Dudley sits on a board that is chaired by close Putin-associate Igor Sechin. So far, the two companies have managed to find a way to carry on business despite sanctions imposed after Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Mr Dudley often has to leave the room during board meetings when matters pertaining personally to Mr Sechin arise as he is on a list of sanctioned persons. If sanctions get tougher - how will BP manage an asset that provides a third of its global oil production?
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