President Vladimir Putin dismissed accusations that Russia was behind cyberattacks towards the US as “farcical” in an interview with NBC broadcast on Monday forward of his summit with President Joe Biden.
The Russian chief additionally mentioned he was open to a jail swap with the US – the destiny of prisoners is ready to be on the agenda when the 2 meet in Geneva on Wednesday – and mentioned that jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny would “not be handled any worse than anyone else.”
US President Biden will attend the summit after per week of assembly allies from the G7, European Union and NATO, with tensions between Moscow and Washington at their highest in years over a protracted listing of disputes.
Requested if Russia was waging a “cyber struggle” towards the US, Putin mentioned: “The place is proof? It is changing into farcical.”
“We have now been accused of every kind of issues, election interference, cyberattacks and so forth and so forth, and never as soon as, not one time, did they hassle to provide any form of proof or proof, simply unfounded accusations.”
US firms, together with a significant gas pipeline community, have been hit by cyberattacks in latest months, usually forcing non permanent shutdowns till ransoms are paid.
Prisoner swap?
Any negotiations over prisoners would deal with people together with former US marine Paul Whelan who was jailed for 16 years by Russia for espionage. Whelan has urged Biden to rearrange a prisoner alternate and mentioned in a latest interview he was sufferer of hostage diplomacy.
One other US citizen, Trevor Reed, was sentenced to 9 years in jail in 2020 on costs of assaulting Russian cops whereas drunk.
Moscow may very well be eyeing the return of the infamous Russian arms vendor imprisoned by the US, Viktor Bout, and a contract pilot and alleged drug trafficker, Konstantin Yaroshenko.
However the White Home moved to shortly tamp down speak of an alternate of “cyber criminals” after Biden appeared open to the thought when talking at a press convention after the G7 assembly in Britain.
“He is not saying he’ll be exchanging cyber criminals with Russia,” Nationwide Safety Advisor Jake Sullivan mentioned.
“What he was speaking about was accountability and the concept accountable nations must be held accountable… not harboring cyber criminals, and to bringing cyber criminals to justice.”
When requested about Navalny and accusations of brutal crushing of dissent in Russia, Putin mentioned “you’re presenting it as dissent and intolerance in the direction of dissent in Russia… we view it fully in a different way.”
Putin known as for “predictability and stability” in Russian-US relations, saying it was “one thing we’ve not seen lately” – whereas additionally describing former president Donald Trump as “colourful” and a “gifted particular person.”