Putin: US nurtured Al-Qaeda and supported terrorists in Chechnya

Photo: kremlin.ru

The US is to blame for the rise of Al-Qaeda and its late mastermind Osama bin Laden, which it empowered to fight Soviet troops in Afghanistan, Vladimir Putin told Oliver Stone. Putin also said there is proof the CIA supported terrorists in Russia's Chechnya.

In the first episode of Stone's hugely anticipated Showtime series, which aired Monday night, the Russian leader reflected on the origin of Islamic extremist groups, including Al-Qaeda.

"Al-Qaeda is not the result of our activities. This is the result of activities of our US friends. This all started in the times of the Soviet war in Afghanistan, when the US security services supported different movements of Islamic fundamentalism in their struggle against the Soviet troops in Afghanistan," Putin told Stone, adding that the "US side has nurtured both Al-Qaeda and [Osama] bin Laden."