Lavrov Mocks Accusations About Russian Meddling in Affairs of Other States

During a TV show on the NTV broadcaster, Lavrov was asked about accusations of Russian interference in the affairs of France, Spain and the United Kingdom and whether Moscow had any plans to continue such activity in the upcoming year.

"You have not mentioned all the things, which we have done this year. Sweden, Denmark, Montenegro, [Former Yugoslav Republic of] Macedonia, Austria… We had a lot of work. Therefore, we forgot about other things, which are also important. For example, the development of cultural ties with Japan… We have not managed to overthrow the Japanese emperor yet. We did everything, but he is to remain for two more years. But we hope that we'll reach our goal," Lavrov said ironically.

Russia has faced numerous unsubstantiated accusations of meddling in the domestic affairs of other countries following the 2016 presidential election in the United States when then-Republican candidate Donald Trump claimed victory against the odds. The US intelligence community alleged that there was collusion between Trump's campaign team and the Kremlin, which brought him victory in the election. The investigations, which are being carried out by US Congress have not provided any evidence so far.

READ MORE: Russian Foreign Ministry Accuses Washington of Meddling in Russian Election

The accusations also came from France during the presidential election in the country, Spain amid referendum in Catalonia and even the United Kingdom, which believes that Moscow somehow influenced the Brexit referendum.