Putin blasts Panama Papers 'provocation,' soothes crisis-hit Russians

By Andrew Osborn and Alexander Winning MOSCOW (Reuters) - Vladimir Putin on Thursday dismissed media reports that billions of dollars in Panama offshore accounts might be linked to him as a U.S.-backed "provocation", as he told ordinary Russians that the country's economic crisis will ease next year. The leak of confidential documents from a Panamanian law firm earlier this month has angered the Kremlin, forcing it to field questions about offshore accounts allegedly belonging to one of Putin's