Kremlin rejects U.S. accusations that Russia spread hurricane misinformation

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin on Tuesday rejected U.S. claims that Russian and Chinese-linked influence actors and the Cuban government had been amplifying misinformation following two U.S. hurricanes, saying that the West blamed Moscow for everything.

A U.S. official said Russian hurricane-related misinformation on Telegram included an Oct. 10 image shared by state-owned news agency RIA that was likely generated by artificial intelligence to show a flooded Disney World.

Asked about the claims, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "This is already a favourite exercise, which is performed as a ritual - Russia must be blamed first and foremost for everything."

"These are nothing but unfounded accusations, and we absolutely reject them," Peskov said. "And in fact, the enviable regularity and variety of these accusations make us treat them with irony."

U.S. intelligence said that Russia remains the "predominant threat" to U.S. elections and that Moscow is using a complex arsenal of tools to back one of the candidates and sow divisions.

Russia denies the accusations and says the United States is intent on casting Russia as an enemy.

(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Anastasia Teterevleva; Editing by Mark Trevelyan/Guy Faulconbridge)

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