Putin says contaminated oil pipeline scandal has hurt Russia's image

MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that a contaminated oil pipeline scandal had seriously damaged Russia's economic interests and image and demanded that the system regulating the quality of oil be improved.

Putin was speaking at a meeting with Nikolai Tokarev, head of the country's Transneft pipeline monopoly, who told te Russian leader that contaminated oil supplied via the Druzhba pipeline had been pumped deliberately by a private company in the Samara region.

Putin's remarks were published on the official Kremlin website.

Belarus said earlier on Tuesday that months of work would be needed to restore clean oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline from Russia to Europe.