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Ex-Catalan leader slams ‘fake news’ reports linking Catalonia’s separatists to Russia

According to the politician, there are no specific facts indicating that this could be true

Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont AP Photo/Markus Schreiber

Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont

© AP Photo/Markus Schreiber

BERLIN, July 25. /TASS/. Reports on alleged links between Catalonia’s representatives and Moscow are unsubstantiated, former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont told reporters at a news conference in Berlin on Wednesday.

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"There were a lot of fake news reports on the issue," the politician said. "However, we should only pay attention to hard evidence and facts. There are no specific facts indicating that this could be true."

According to the politician, Internet bots were behind the dissemination of these rumors.

In November 2017, the Spanish daily, El Pais, wrote that some Russia-based hackers allegedly helped Catalonia’s authorities maintain a website on the independence referendum held on October 1, 2017. The Russian Embassy in Madrid later said that reports by some Spanish media outlets concerning the alleged "Russian connection" in the Catalan crisis do not help readers see the true origin of problems in that region.

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