The Kremlin on Tuesday criticized the U.S. "diplomatic boycott" of the Beijing Winter Olympics, saying that the Games should be "free of politics."

"It's hard to say how much of a boycott this is, because after all, the Olympics are being held in rather tough conditions associated with pandemic restrictions," Sputnik news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying. 

The most important thing is that the issue should not concern the athletes, he told reporters.