Russia says allegations it hacked Ukrainian Navy website are false

Russia's foreign ministry said allegations from Ukraine's defence ministry that hackers linked to the Russian authorities had attacked the website of the Ukrainian Navy lacked evidence and looked like an effort to curry favour with Washington.

Russia's foreign ministry said allegations from Ukraine's defence ministry that hackers linked to the Russian authorities had attacked the website of the Ukrainian Navy lacked evidence and looked like an effort to curry favour with Washington. Kyiv earlier this month accused Russia-linked hackers of attacking the Navy's website and of publishing fake reports about the international Sea Breeze-2021 military drills which involved more than 30 countries in the Black Sea despite Russian calls to cancel.

In a statement to Reuters, the Russian foreign ministry said the Ukrainian accusations were false. "We're already long used to constant allegations from Western capitals about the involvement of Russia in all and every cyberattack, and now the Ukrainian leadership has made evidence-free allegations against us," the ministry said.

"The aim of this move is clear: to look good in front of their transatlantic sponsor even while defying common sense." Moscow says policy-making in Ukraine is heavily influenced by the United States, something Kyiv denies.

Relations between Kyiv and Moscow plummeted after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and backed a pro-Russian separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine.