Well, he practically copied the whole of the plot of Casino Royale from Phyllis Bottome's book The Lifeline...so his borrowing antics are no longer a surprise.
Given the misogyny of Fleming's work, I wonder if he'd admit to not only reading AC but finding her an inspiration? (Me, wildly speculating, because I know zero about Fleming beyond the misogyny bit.)
LoL. The funny thing is, when she introduced Sir Rupert and gave a description of his exploits (travel in China, Nepal, the x-stans, etc. I immediately thought of Peter Fleming (Ian's bro). :D It is unlikely, of course, that he would have inspired the character.
Still, it is entirely possible that he would have travelled through Baghdad at some point, possibly at the same time as Agatha. And he was working for the FO in the 30s, and was writing about his travels.
That's my wild speculation.
As for Ian admitting to being "inspired", I have no idea.
http://brokentune.booklikes.com/post/1637261/the-lifeline
Still, it is entirely possible that he would have travelled through Baghdad at some point, possibly at the same time as Agatha. And he was working for the FO in the 30s, and was writing about his travels.
That's my wild speculation.
As for Ian admitting to being "inspired", I have no idea.