Russia alleged that an American citizen fought with Georgian forces. Deputy Chief of the General Staff Anatoly Nogovitsyn displayed photocopies of an American passport at a news briefing, claiming that the passport was found at a Georgian fighting position. Vladimir Putin told CNN, "We have serious reasons to believe that American citizens were right at the heart of the military action".[43] The passport owner and U.S. authorities denied the accusation, saying that his passport was lost elsewhere.[44]