Kremlin: US election meddling charges groundless

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President Vladimir Putin's spokesman says no evidence has been presented of Russian government involvement in meddling in US elections.

Speaking in the wake of the indictment in the US of 13 Russians for alleged covert efforts to sway voter, spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, "There are no indications that the Russian government could be involved in this."

It was the Kremlin's first comment since the indictments were filed last Friday.

Peskov told journalists that the indictments "only concern Russian citizens" while Moscow has "heard accusations from Washington about the involvement of the Russian state, the Kremlin and the government."

October 11, 2017: The Chef of Vladimir Putin and head of the holding company Concord, Yevgeny Prigozhin (L) attends the meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States' (CIS) leaders in Sochi, Russia. /VCG Photo

The indictment alleges that a campaign directed by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a Putin ally, became focused on hurting Hillary Clinton and helping Donald Trump swing the vote.

The effort allegedly involved hundreds of people working in shifts and with a budget of millions of dollars. Three companies were also indicted.

Russia "has not seen significant evidence" of interference in US affairs, Peskov said.

"As before, we insist that we consider such evidence groundless, we don't consider it exhaustive or fair at all and we cannot agree with it."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov gives a speech during the Munich Security Conference, February 17, 2018, in Munich, south Germany. /VCG Photo

Russia "does not have a custom of interfering in other countries' internal affairs and is not doing this now," Peskov said.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Saturday dismissed the indictments as "blabber" and "fantasies," in a speech at the Munich Security Conference.

Source(s): AFP