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Putin Was Joking about Support for Harris in US Election, Says Foreign Minister

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a meeting on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana, Kazakhstan July 4, 2024. (Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters)
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a meeting on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana, Kazakhstan July 4, 2024. (Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters)
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Putin Was Joking about Support for Harris in US Election, Says Foreign Minister

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a meeting on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana, Kazakhstan July 4, 2024. (Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters)
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a meeting on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana, Kazakhstan July 4, 2024. (Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters)

Russian President Vladimir Putin was joking when he said Moscow was supporting Democratic candidate Kamala Harris in November's US presidential election, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with Sky News Arabia.

Putin said earlier this month that Russia wanted Harris to win the contest in a teasing comment that cited her "infectious" laugh as a reason to prefer her over Republican candidate and former President Donald Trump. The Russian leader's remark prompted the White House to say Putin should stop commenting on the Nov. 5 election.

"It was a joke," Lavrov said, when asked how much the change in US president would affect Russia's foreign policy. "President Putin has a good sense of humor. He often jokes during his statements and interviews.

"I see no long-term differences in our attitude to the current or previous elections in the United States, because it is ruled by the notorious 'deep state'," Lavrov said, without giving evidence for that assertion.

Lavrov's comments were published on the foreign ministry website on Friday.

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South Korea Police Say Rite at Family Grave Led to Deadly Wildfire

29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa
29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa
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South Korea Police Say Rite at Family Grave Led to Deadly Wildfire

29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa
29 March 2025, South Korea, Andong: A firefighting helicopter tries to extinguish a wildfire in Andong, in Gyeongsang Province, southeastern South Korea. Photo: -/yonhap/dpa

South Korean police said on Sunday they booked a man suspected of starting what grew into the country's largest wildfire, killing at least 26 people and razing thousands of buildings including historic temples.
Authorities believe the man, who is in his 50s, began the fire in southeastern Uiseong County when he performed an ancestral rite by a family grave on March 22, an official from Gyeongbuk Provincial Police said.
"We are in the process of verifying evidence," the official added.
In South Korea's legal system, booking involves registering a suspect but may not coincide immediately with arrest or charges.
According to Reuters, Yonhap news agency said the man had denied the allegations.
The fire burned about 48,000 hectares (119,000 acres), destroyed an estimated 4,000 structures, and forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate. By Friday the blaze was largely contained although firefighters were still battling small hotspots that had sprung up on Saturday.
The Uiseong fire as well as separate blazes across the country last week left at least 30 people dead and sparked calls for national reforms to better tackle such disasters, which experts say are being exacerbated by climate change.
The forest service said on Sunday another wildfire broke out in a southern area near Suncheonsi, and authorities had deployed 23 firetrucks, four helicopters and 123 firefighters.