Russian diplomats have strongly warned the US not to interfere in their upcoming election over fears it would disrupt their democracy.
On Wednesday (local time), the US expressed concerns over the Russian electoral commission's decision not to allow opposition leader Alexei Navalny to run in the election, the Huffington Post reports.
The widely expected decision to bar Mr Navalny from running in the election, due to previous convictions for fraud, was made on Tuesday.
Current russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to easily win the election in March 2018.
A US State Department official had called the development "concerning", citing the "restrictions on independent voices" participating in the 2018 Russian election.
But Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova has responded frostily, telling the US to stay out of state affairs.
"This statement by the US Department of State, which I'm sure will not be the only one, is a direct interference into the electoral process and the state's domestic affairs, " she wrote on Facebook.
The United States is currently conducting an inquiry into Russian interference in their own election, with four senior advisors to President Donald Trump so far implicated in the investigation.
- Ex-Trump adviser Michael Flynn pleads guilty to lying to the FBI
- Donald Trump tries to deflect probes into Russian relations
- Trump demanded loyalty, asked for Flynn probe to be dropped - Comey
Former US National Security Advisor Michael Flynn admitted to lying about conversations with former Russian ambassador Sergei Kislyak, before Mr Trump took office.
Campaign managers Paul Manafort and Robert Gates were charged with 12 counts, including conspiracy against the United States and failing to register as foreign agents of Ukraine's former pro-Russian government.
Campaign adviser George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to FBI agents about his contacts with people who claimed to have ties to senior Russian officials.
Newshub.
