BREAKING: Vladimir Putin accuses the US of plotting to interfere with RUSSIAN ELECTIONS

The Russian figurehead, who has held his post since 2012, is up for election again on March 18 next year.

But the Moscow chief and former KGB agent has claimed sleuths want to influence his nation’s vote in revenge for alleged interference in the US elections last year.

also said allegations of state-sponsored doping in , which have led to the banning of several Russian athletes ahead of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, seemed to be aimed at disrupting Russia’s presidential vote in March.

The Russian vote is pitched to be one of the more bizarre electoral battles in the nation’s history, with TV host and socialite Ksenia Sobchak set to challenge the longtime leader.

Opposition leaders said the Kremlin had convinced the 36-year-old to take part in order to make a mockery of the election and distract voters from the issues.

Vladimir Putin’s critics said she is being held up as a “laughing stock” in order to reduce the credibility of any opposition to the current president. 

Ms Sobchak previously starred as host of a Russian reality TV show and was a well-known socialite nicknamed ‘the Russian Paris Hilton’. 

More to follow…