Russian President Vladimir Putin says Russians charged with interfering in the 2016 presidential race by special counsel Robert Mueller may be prosecuted — if they broke Russian laws.
"If they violated Russian laws, then we will bring them to justice. If they did not violate Russian laws, then there is nothing to bring them to justice in Russia for," Putin told Megyn Kelly in an excerpt from an interview to be aired on NBC Friday at 10 pm/ET.
"In the final count you should realize that people in Russia live in accordance with Russian laws and not U.S. laws, and it will remain so."
Putin said that even if the 13 Russians and three Russian organizations in question meddled in the 2016 presidential election, "I don't care. I'm couldn't care less … because they do not represent the interests of the Russian state."
He added: "If somebody really worries you, then please notify us in an official manner, send us a document that corroborates this. Please explain to us what specifically they are accused of and then we'll see."
On Feb. 16, the special counsel indicted 13 Russian nationals and three Russian entities for possible meddling in the 2016 presidential election. The indictment says they tried to create chaos in the United States leading up to the 2016 election through an information warfare campaign.
Mueller has been investigating Russia's activities in the U.S. election and whether the Trump campaign colluded with it.
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