Russia has dismissed claims it failed to provide intelligence about one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects.Moscow called the allegations a “low blow” aimed at shifting the blame for not preventing the twin attacks last April.
It was reported this week a US government review had found Russia turned down FBI requests for more information on suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev.
The review appeared to exonerate the FBI, the New York Times reported.
But Russia has hit back and in a statement the foreign ministry said: “It seems that they are trying to push responsibility onto us. If that’s true, it’s a low blow.
“Given the anti-Russia campaign being waged in the US, due to the events in Ukraine and Crimea, we do not rule out that someone is trying to exonerate the American special services, which did not see that a terrorist attack was in preparation.”
The statement added the Russian authorities “transmitted their conclusions” on Tsarnaev “well ahead” of the attack, but claimed these were “not studied in the correct way”.
The Tsarnaev family is from Dagestan, a Russian republic.
Tamerlan Tsarnaev was shot dead in a gun battle with police shortly after two bombs exploded near the finish line of the Boston Marathon.
Three people were killed and more than 250 injured.
Authorities are pursuing the death penalty for his brother Dzhokhar for his alleged role in the blasts.
His trial begins in November, and he has pleaded not guilty to 30 charges relating to the bombings.
Seventeen of these can carry sentences of death or life in prison.
