11 August 2016, 10:37 GMT
KIEV (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said that it had eliminated a spy ring organized by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry in Crimea, which was preparing acts of sabotage on "critical and life-supporting elements of the peninsula's infrastructure." An FSB officer died during a shootout that ensued during the raid.
"US government has seen nothing so far that corroborates Russian allegations of a 'Crimea incursion' & Ukraine has strongly refuted them," Pyatt posted in his official Twitter account.
The US State Department said Wednesday that it was aware of the reports of the thwarted attacks and was in touch with Ukraine on the matter.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Kiev's authorities have resorted to terrorism to divert attention away from the conflict in the east of Ukraine.
Crimea became part of Russia after almost 97 percent of those who voted in a local referendum on the issue in 2014 supported the move.
