Russia turned down US, EU Demand

President Vladimir Putin of RussiaRussia has rejected calls by the United States and the European Union to set free opposition protesters kept in custody for participating in what it termed illegal demonstrations on Sunday.The culprits were also accused of paying teenagers to attend.The protests is seen as the biggest since a wave of anti-Kremlin demonstrations in 2011/2012 and it is coming a year prior to a presidential election that Vladimir Putin is hoping to vie for as he looks forward to a fourth term.Hundreds of protesters were detained across Russia Sunday by the Police, involving opposition leader Alexei Navalny after thousands took to the streets to protest against corruption and ask for the resignation of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.Medvedev’s image maker has called corruption accusations against him “propagandistic attacks,” adding that they amount to pre-election posturing by Navalny, who hopes to oppose Putin at the polls next year.