Russian President Vladimir Putin during an interview in France on Tuesday brushed aside accusations of Russian meddling in the US presidential election. Putin claimed the allegations were an excuse used by Democrats to explain Hillary Clinton's presidential defeat, according to the Associated Press.
"They want to explain to themselves and prove to others that they had nothing to do with it, their policy was right, they have done everything well, but someone from the outside cheated them," Putin told the French newspaper Le Figaro. "It's not so. They simply lost, and they must acknowledge it."
Putin continued to argue that the accusations were being used as excuses and explained why he believed President Donald Trump triumphed over Clinton.
"[The] people who lost the vote hate to acknowledge that they indeed lost because the person who won was closer to the people and had a better understanding of what people wanted," Putin said.
Putin also argued that technology today could allow for anyone to hack the Democratic National Committee and place a Russian signature on the attacks.
"Maybe someone lying in his bed invented something or maybe someone deliberately inserted a USB with a Russian citizen's signature or anything else," Putin said. "Anything can be done in this virtual world."
The topic then shifted to Syria and the chemical bombing allegedly perpetrated by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
"There is no proof of Assad using chemical weapons. In our deep belief, it was a provocation. Assad didn't use the weapons," the Russian leader said.