Putin says he can't respond to Mueller charges 'if they do not violate Russian laws'

Eliza Collins | USA TODAY

Russian President Vladimir Putin has no plans to respond to the criminal charges special counsel Robert Mueller filed last month against 13 Russians for alleged interference in the U.S. election.

“We cannot respond to that, if they do not violate Russian laws,” Putin told NBC in an interview that aired Friday night. He said there needed to be an official request to the general prosecutor of the Russian Federation with official documents.

When NBC host Megyn Kelly pointed out that the last time she interviewed Putin in the summer, he said he needed to see documents in response to allegations Russia interfered. But this time there was an official indictment.

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“This has to go through official channels not through the press or the yelling and hollering in the United States Congress,” Putin said Friday.

Mueller – who is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election – filed his first criminal charges in February against Russian nationals and businesses. Mueller said their efforts were wide-ranging with the goal of undermining the election.

The indictment says that Russians, posing as Americans, "communicated with unwitting individuals" associated with Trump's 2016 campaign "to seek to coordinate political activities."

The charges also say the Russian efforts were aimed at "supporting the presidential campaign of then-candidate Donald J. Trump." Although it does not say the Trump campaign knowingly participated in the efforts.

Contributing: Brad Heath