Putin: Russian doping scandals could be US election meddling
Moscow, Nov 9 (AP) President Vladimir Putin is suggestingthat a recent flurry of Russian sports doping allegationscould be an American attempt to interfere in next year'sRussian presidential election.
Today, four Russian cross-country skiers were foundguilty of doping at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. In all, sixRussian skiers have been found guilty by an InternationalOlympics Committee commission.
Putin noted that international sports organizations havea complex skein of "relationships and dependencies." He said"and the controlling stake is in the United States," wheresponsors and television broadcasters are concentrated.
"In response to our alleged interference in theirelections, they want to create problems during the election ofthe president of Russia," he said Thursday.
Putin has not announced whether he will run for anotherterm in the March 18 election.
Russian officials have consistently denied involvement inefforts to interfere with or influence last year's USpresidential election, including the hacking of DemocraticNational Committee emails.
They also reject complaints that the Kremlin-fundedSputnik news agency and the RT satellite television channelact as government propaganda arms.
In turn, they have alleged that US private companieseffectively act in line with Washington directives.
After Twitter last month banned advertising by RT andSputnik, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharovaclaimed that the move was due to pressure from U.S.
intelligence services.
She said retaliatory measures would be taken, but nonehave emerged. On Thursday, she said "symmetrical measures"would follow if the US restricts Russian media activities.
The Russian Cross-Country Ski Federation said Thursdaythat four cross-country skiers at the Sochi Olympics have beendisqualified by the International Olympic Committee and bannedfrom all future Olympics.
They include Maxim Vylegzhanin, Alexei Petukhov, YuliaIvanova and Evgenia Shapovalova. Vylegzhanin won three silvermedals in Sochi, but none of the others won a medal.
Six Russian cross-country skiers have now been foundguilty of doping at the Sochi Olympics by an IOC commission.
(AP)UZM.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.