Plot to assassinate Putin foiled

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Russian and Ukrainian security groups have foiled a plan to assassinate Prime Minister Vladimir Putin after Russia's March 4 presidential election, Russia's pro-government Channel One television said on Monday.

The report, which did not quote any named security officials, said Ukrainian special services had detained two people in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Odessa after an explosion at a rented apartment in which one person was killed.

The report said the plotters had been working for a group that wants to create an Islamic state in Russia's North Caucasus and had planned to travel to Moscow to assassinate Putin, who is expected to win the presidential election.

Channel One said the Ukrainian special services had alerted the Russian FSB security agency and the men had been detained early this year.

"Our final goal was to go to Moscow and attempt to assassinate Putin," a man described as one of the plotters was shown as saying on Channel One. "Our deadline was after the election of the president of Russia."

Russia's Interfax news agency said Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov had declined to comment on the incident. He could not immediately be reached for comment.