Why the snub for hero of WWII?

But the Foreign Office has sunk to a new low by refusing the Russian embassy's invitation to award the Ushakov medal to a 93-year-old World War II veteran for his services on the Arctic convoys.

Apparently Foreign Secretary William Hague doesn't think that braving nazi U-boats in the Arctic to support a wartime ally is worthy of reward despite 3,000 men dying on the voyages.

Hague has further insulted Bob Cowan by claiming the offer was refused on the basis that service wasn't carried out in the past five years.

What is even more astonishing is that - as spread across the pages of several national newspapers last Thusday - the government heaped praise on springer spaniel Theo as it gave him a posthumous award for bravery as a sniffer dog in Afghanistan.

While there is a campaign to have the government's refusal of the Ushakov medal reversed, I think the Con-Dems' contempt of those who fought against fascism is speaking somewhat clearly for itself.

Hussein Al-Alak

Manchester