Charges against Russian Economic Development Minister Alexey Ulyukayev are very serious, the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
"These are very serious charges that require very serious evidence. In any case, only the court can decide anything. It is known that the court does not always agree with investigators, and vice versa," TASS cited Peskov as saying.
"It's nighttime. I don't know whether this has been reported to the president," Peskov said.
Earlier today the IC spokesperson said that the Investigative Committee detained Economic Development Minister Alexey Ulyukayev on suspicion of receiving $2 million for the positive assessment provided by the ministry that allowed Rosneft to purchase the government’s 50% stake in Bashneft.
