The Kremlin said Monday it has no knowledge of planned terrorist attacks in Russia, dismissing a warning from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow about the heightened threat of an attack in the country.
“According to media sources, there have been threats of attacks against shopping centers, railway and metro stations, and other public gathering places in major urban areas,” the Embassy said in a statement late Sunday evening.
It added that attacks were possible in Moscow, St. Petersburg and “areas of heightened tension along the Russian border with Ukraine,” warning U.S. citizens to take extra precaution.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he was unaware of such information, and criticized the U.S.’ announcement as “highly unusual.”
“We are looking into whether we have received any information about planned attacks from the American intelligence services, but I am not aware of any at the moment.”
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova had earlier criticized the Embassy’s warning, questioning whether it had followed protocol by making the announcement before sharing its information with Russia.
The warning comes amid surging tensions between Moscow and Washington over the standoff over Ukraine.
Peskov also downplayed the prospects for a summit between Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday, saying it was “premature” to discuss a meeting between the two leaders, despite French leader Emmanuel Macron stating they had agreed “in principle” to a meeting in the coming weeks.
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