Kremlin denies Putin connection to allegations of secret bank accounts

The Kremlin responded angrily on Monday to reports alleging that close associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin were involved in secret offshore transactions totaling $2 billion. The reports, published Sunday, are based on a leak of millions of documents from a Panamian law firm that over decades helped set up offshore bank accounts and shell companies for some of the world’s most prominent leaders and business people. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the allegations as part of an international campaign to smear Russia and to distract from what he deemed the success of its military operations in Syria. Putin was not connected to any of the alleged accounts, Peskov said in remarks carried by Russian news agencies.