Overview
- RIA Novosti quotes Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova dismissing the reported comment as “wet fantasies,” using sharply pejorative language.
- Zakharova delivered the remarks on the TVC channel, according to RIA Novosti’s January 11 report from Moscow.
- The Telegraph had earlier reported that British defence minister John Hili said in Kyiv he would kidnap President Vladimir Putin if given the chance.
- TASS separately reports that senior lawmaker Leonid Slutsky called such talk criminal intent and said British officials should be held responsible for their words.
- As of January 11, the articles provide no independent confirmation of Hili’s exact words beyond The Telegraph’s account and Russian officials’ reactions.