"That is the assessment of the Treasury Department, I think is the one that…best reflects the administration view, obviously the Treasury Department is responsible for enforcing sanctions and obviously there are significant sanctions that are in place against Russia because of their destabilizing activities inside of Ukraine," Earnest said when asked whether the administration agreed with the Treasury’s assessment on Putin.
Following Szubin’s remarks, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday that such accusations cast doubt on the US Treasury Department’s credibility and that these allegations could be easily brushed off as yet just another media hoax.
The BBC also claimed that Putin owned a $35-milllion yacht — a claim which Peskov refuted, arguing that he knew Putin did not own such a vessel.
Moreover, Peskov said that the latest Western accusations were unlikely to negatively affect US-Russia relations.
