Sarah Sanders declines to call Russian election a 'sham': 'We don't dictate how other countries operate'

White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders on Tuesday declined to say whether Russia's elections were "free and fair."

During Tuesday's White House briefing, Sanders confirmed that President Donald Trump had not discussed U.S. election interference when he called to congratulate Russian President Vladimir Putin on his recent reelection. She said that Trump also did not bring up the recent poisoning in Britain that has been linked to Putin's regime.

Sanders turned down one reporter's invitation to call the Russian election a "sham."

"Would the White House call the elections free and fair?" another reporter asked.

"Look, in terms of the election, we're focused on our elections," she replied. "We don't get to dictate how other countries operate. What we do know is that Putin has been elected in their country and that's not something we can dictate how they operate."

"We can only focus on the freeness and the fairness of our elections," Sanders added. "It's something we're going to do everything we can to protect, make sure bad actors don't have the opportunity to impact them in any way."

Watch the video below from CNN.