Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday said American politicians were whipping up hysteria about a mythical Russian threat in the US presidential campaign as a ploy to distract voters from their own failings.
Putin said he found it hard to believe that anyone seriously thought Moscow was capable of influencing the November 8 election. The US has formally accused Russia of a campaign of cyber attacks against Democratic Party organisations, while Hillary Clinton has accused Republican rival Donald Trump of being a Putin "puppet".