Russia enraged by foreign involvement in Ukrainian affairs: Kremlin

Moscow was enraged by foreign intervention in Ukrainian internal affairs, the Kremlin has said.

"We surely regret and resent when outside involvement in the internal events in Kiev becomes obvious," the Komsomolskaya Pravda daily newspaper Thursday quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying.

Moscow could not understand why foreign diplomats in Kiev had advised Ukrainian authorities how to act and how to deal with opposition riots, he said, calling that behavior "unimaginable" and "causing rage" in Moscow.

"Russia and Ukraine are brotherly nations and Moscow watches events in Kiev with great attention and worry," the official said, adding Russia was convinced Ukrainian authorities knew what to do to normalize the situation.

Moscow believed it was unacceptable to interfere in its neighbor's affairs, he said.

All Kiev's decisions were sovereign and made in the frame of democratic procedures, so any use of political tactics by outsiders was unacceptable, Peskov said.

The State Duma, or lower house of the Russian parliament, on Wednesday urged Western political circles to stop meddling in the internal affairs of Ukraine in violation of international law and stop contributing to further escalation of the conflict.

Mass protests in Ukraine began on Nov. 21 last year, following a government decision to put on hold an association agreement with the European Union and opt for closer relations with Russia.

Since last weekend, more than 300 people have been injured during the unrest in central Kiev.