The British Home Office confirmed Tuesday that it had ordered a prominent Russian journalist to leave the country on grounds of national security.


Alexander Malikov, who has worked as the London correspondent for Ostankino television since 1990, was asked to leave the United Kingdom because "his presence is not conducive to the public good for national security reasons," a spokes-woman for the Home Office said.


The spokeswoman declined to give further details on the reasons for Malikov's expulsion.


Speaking by telephone to The Moscow Times, Malikov, 44, denied that he had ever been associated with Russia's intelligence service.


"They point a finger at you like in the old Soviet days, saying you're an enemy of the people," he said.


"Until now this has all been nothing but diplomatic mumbo-jumbo that somebody told them I worked for the intelligence service. But they should produce some evidence."


Malikov said that he had applied to renew his visa shortly before Christmas.


It was only after making a telephone call to the Russian Embassy in London to ask why his application had been refused that he was informed that Home Secretary Michael Howard had confidential evidence confirming that Malikov was employed by Russian intelligence services, he said.


Malikov received a letter Jan. 4 ordering him to leave within 28 days.


"A mistake has been made here -- for whatever reason -- but they should be very careful before making accusations," Malikov said.


"And nobody ever mentioned all the good I've done for Russian-British relations," he added.


While Malikov intends to appeal to the home secretary's advisory board, he would not say how much longer he intends to stay in Britain.


"I'm packing my things," he said, "But I'm fighting for my name."


The Foreign Intelligence Service in Moscow also denied that Malikov had ever worked for it.


"Malikov is not and never has been in the intelligence service," a spokesman said. "He has nothing to do with the intelligence service."


The spokesman said that while the intelligence service rarely confirmed or denied such charges, it had made an exception for Malikov.


"We stopped using journalist cover shortly after Yevgeny Primakov took over," the spokesman said.


Primakov is the head of the Foreign Intelligence Service.


He has been in charge of the service since the reorganization of the former KGB in 1991.


The spokesman said the intelligence service had informed Britain last November that Malikov had no ties to it.


The spokesman was unable to say whether reprisals would follow, although this was widely believed to be the case.


The last Russian to be expelled from Britain for spying was an unnamed diplomat, kicked out in April last year shortly after Russia told a British diplomat to leave Moscow for the same reason.