Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov meets with his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei (not pictured) in Moscow on Sept 2, 2020. (Handout / RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY / AFP)

MOSCOW - Accusations that Russia used hackers to meddle in the United States’ internal affairs are “unsubstantiated”, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday.

Microsoft Corp said on Thursday that hackers linked to countries including Russia were trying to spy on people linked to US presidential candidates Donald Trump, the incumbent, and Democratic challenger Joe Biden.

Lavrov said the United States itself promoted its own interests illegally. He was speaking at a news conference with his Chinese counterpart.

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“Russia has not interfered, is not interfering and does not intend to interfere in anyone’s internal affairs, or electoral processes,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters separately on Friday.