By Alexander Marrow
(Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Sunday it did not believe the U.S. administration was responsible for Saturday's assassination attempt on U.S. presidential candidate Donald Trump, but accused it of creating an atmosphere that provoked the attack.
Trump was shot in the ear during a rally in Pennsylvania, in an attack now being investigated as an assassination attempt. The attacker was shot dead and law enforcement officials said they had not yet identified a motive.
"We do not believe that the attempt to eliminate and assassinate Trump was organised by the current authorities," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
"But the atmosphere around candidate Trump ... provoked what America is confronting today."
U.S. President Joe Biden condemned the attack, saying there was no place for that kind of violence in America. Peskov said Russia condemned any violence in the course of the political struggle.
His comments echoed those of some of Trump's Republican allies, who immediately pinned the blame on Biden.
"After numerous attempts to remove candidate Trump from the political arena - using first legal tools, the courts, prosecutors, attempts to politically discredit and compromise the candidate - it was obvious to all outside observers that his life was in danger," Peskov said.
He added that there were no plans for President Vladimir Putin to call Trump in light of the incident.
Putin has said the outcome of the U.S. presidential election is unlikely to change anything for Russia and that Trump's presidency had damaged U.S.-Russia relations.
But the Russian leader has taken a public interest in Trump's statements that he could end the Ukraine war, saying he does not know the details but supports the idea of ending the war in principle.
World leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, rapidly condemned Saturday's attack, expressing shock, denouncing political violence and wishing Trump a quick recovery.
US CIVIL WAR?
Peskov and Russia's foreign ministry pointed to previous assassinations of U.S. presidents, highlighting domestic U.S. security failings.
Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament, said American political crisis, deep divisions in society and Washington's focus on "interfering" in other nations' affairs were all causes of the attack on Trump.
"With its years-long policy, the United States has let itself reach literally the brink of civil war," Volodin wrote on Telegram.
Volodin also said Trump's position on Ukraine could not be completely ruled out as a reason for the attack.
"Trump is one of the few Western politicians who has openly spoken about the need to stop sponsoring military action," Volodin said.
Russia's foreign ministry used the shooting to urge Washington to stop funding Ukraine's military and concentrate on improving domestic law enforcement instead.
Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has brought Russia's ties with the West to their lowest ebb since the height of the Cold War.
Asked whether the Trump attack could affect the legitimacy of the United States' upcoming election, Peskov said: "It is not for us to judge. We have not the slightest desire to interfere. This is a U.S. matter."
(Reporting by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Philippa Fletcher)
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