Russian Corruption Being Overstated, Top Leaders Say : Kremlin: Premier, foreign minister accuse U.S. media of mounting a smear campaign. They insist they are probing allegations of money laundering.

Top Russian officials acknowledged Wednesday that Russia has serious problems with corruption and other financial crimes but accused U.S. media of exaggerating the problem as part of a smear campaign.

Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin and Foreign Minister Igor S. Ivanov--the first high-ranking officials to speak out in response to recent allegations of widespread money laundering--accused U.S. journalists and politicians of rushing to judgment on the basis of unproven allegations.

“Everything connected with money laundering, everything connected with the criminal side of this kind of activity, all this is in the field of vision of our law enforcement agencies,” Putin told reporters. Russian investigators “are constantly in touch” with the FBI and other U.S. authorities, he said.

“If someone moved by political considerations wants to blow some topics out of proportion, let them do it,” Putin said. “It will neither hasten nor hamper the work of our law enforcement bodies.”

In recent weeks, news reports suggesting that billions of dollars originating in Russia were funneled through U.S. banks, including the Bank of New York, have spurred suspicions of money laundering on a large scale.

While no one has been charged, some observers and politicians in the United States have called for an end to financial aid to Russia, especially assistance provided by the International Monetary Fund.

A separate scandal over whether Kremlin officials and members of President Boris N. Yeltsin’s family accepted kickbacks from a Swiss engineering firm has also cast a shadow of suspicion over the Russian government.

Ivanov accused some U.S. publications of using unproven allegations against a few individuals and companies to condemn Russia as a whole.

“Yes, [corruption] exists, and it exists not only in Russia. Yes, this problem must be tackled, and the corresponding bodies in Russia are doing it,” Ivanov said.

“But the way it is being done by some mass media in the West, under the pretext of still-unconfirmed facts--they are trying to besmirch our country, to besmirch our society, to besmirch our business community and our entrepreneurs,” Ivanov said. “To cast aspersions on our country, on our society under the pretext of a struggle against corruption--that is something we will not tolerate.”

In Washington, White House Chief of Staff John Podesta said Wednesday that President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore have been briefed on the corruption allegations, “and I think we’ll wait and see what the facts are.”

“We shouldn’t jump to too many conclusions,” he cautioned. On the other hand, “We shouldn’t turn a blind eye to corruption in Russia. We ought to press ahead for reform.”

Russian prosecutors say they have sought, but so far not received, information from the FBI about the suspected money laundering. Some reports, citing unnamed officials, have suggested that money lent by the IMF may have been among the funds allegedly laundered by Russians.

IMF officials say they have repeatedly looked into the charges and have found no evidence that loan funds were improperly diverted. However, in an interview published Wednesday in USA Today, Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers seemed to signal a policy change by saying the Clinton administration will not support the further disbursement of funds until the IMF can account for how previous tranches were spent.

Treasury aides quickly sought to soften Summers’ comments, saying it was premature to conclude that the IMF aid should be halted.

Russia’s envoy to the IMF, Alexander Y. Livshits, responded to Summers in a news conference by noting that a review by the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers completed last month concluded that the funds were fully accounted for.

“I would love to know what more the U.S. Treasury secretary wants to check,” Livshits said.

“Every country faces problems,” he added. “But nobody should be allowed to humiliate Russia.”

Times staff writer James Gerstenzang in Washington contributed to this report.