SOCHI , Russia ( CNN ) -- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has accused the United States of orchestrating the conflict in Georgia to benefit one of its presidential election candidates . Russian PM Vladimir Putin has accused the U.S. of orchestrating the conflict in Georgia . In an interview in the Black Sea city of Sochi on Thursday , Putin said the U.S. had encouraged Georgia to attack the autonomous region of South Ossetia . Putin said his defense officials had told him it was done to benefit a presidential candidate -- Republican John McCain and Democrat Barack Obama are competing to succeed George W. Bush -- although he presented no evidence to back it up . `` U.S. citizens were indeed in the area in conflict , '' Putin said . `` They were acting in implementing those orders doing as they were ordered , and the only one who can give such orders is their leader . '' Watch Putin accuse the United States » . White House spokeswoman Dana Perino blasted Putin 's statements , saying they were `` patently false . '' `` To suggest that the United States orchestrated this on behalf of a political candidate just sounds not rational , '' she said . U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Robert Wood concurred and labeled Putin 's statements `` ludicrous . '' `` Russia is responsible for the crisis , '' Wood said in Washington on Thursday . `` For the Russians to say they are not responsible for what happened in Georgia is ludicrous . ... Russia is to blame for this crisis , and the world is responding to what Russia has done . '' When told that many diplomats in the United States and Europe blame Russia for provoking the conflict and for invading Georgia , Putin said Russia had no choice but to invade Georgia after dozens of its peacekeepers in South Ossetia were killed . He told Chance it was to avert a human calamity . iReport.com : First-person accounts from the center of the conflict . The former Russian president , still considered the most powerful man in the country , said he was disappointed that the U.S. had not done more to stop Georgia 's attack . Putin recalled that he was watching the situation in Georgia and South Ossetia unfold when he was at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games on August 8 . He said he spoke to U.S. President Bush , also attending , who told the Russian prime minister he did n't want war , but Putin spoke of his disappointment that the U.S. administration did n't do more to stop Georgia early in the conflict . Also Thursday , Putin announced economic measures that he said were unrelated to the fighting with Georgia . Nineteen U.S. poultry meat companies would be banned from exporting their products to Russia because they had failed health and safety tests , and 29 other companies had been warned to improve their standards or face the same ban , Putin said . Putin said Russia 's health and agricultural ministries had randomly tested the poultry products and found them to be full of antibiotics and arsenic . Putin repeated that the bans were not related to the Georgian conflict , but they indicate the measures that some Western countries -- particularly in Europe -- fear if Russia goes on a diplomatic offensive . Watch analysis of Russia 's relationship with the West . » . Russia is trying to counterbalance mounting pressure from the West over its military action in Georgia and its recognition of the breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia . But Russia 's hopes of winning international support for its actions in Georgia were dashed Thursday , when China and other Asian nations expressed concern about tension in the region . The joint declaration from the Shanghai Cooperation Organization , which includes China , Russia , Tajikistan , Kyrgystan , Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan , said the countries hoped that any further conflict could be resolved peacefully . Watch more on rising tensions between Russia and the West . » . `` The presidents reaffirmed their commitment to the principles of respect for historic and cultural traditions of every country and efforts aimed at preserving the unity of a state and its territorial integrity , '' the declaration said , The Associated Press reported . `` Placing the emphasis exclusively on the use of force has no prospects and hinders a comprehensive settlement of local conflicts , '' AP quoted the group as saying . Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had appealed to the group at a summit in Tajikistan on Thursday to support its actions , saying it would serve as a `` serious signal for those who are trying to justify the aggression . '' On Wednesday , a U.S. ship carrying aid docked in Georgia , while Britain 's Foreign Secretary David Miliband traveled to the Ukraine , which is worried about Russia 's intentions in the region , to offer the UK 's support . Miliband equated Moscow 's offensive in Georgia with the Soviet tanks that invaded Czechoslovakia to crush the Prague Spring democratic reforms in 1968 , and demanded Russia `` change course , '' AP reported . iReport.com : Do remember the Cold War ? Copyright 2008 CNN . All rights reserved.This material may not be published , broadcast , rewritten , or redistributed . Associated Press contributed to this report .
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin accuses U.S. of plotting conflict . Putin says U.S. did it to help one of the presidential candidates . Russia fails to win support of Asian security alliance over Georgia . Russia had appealed to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization for backing .