Russia on Thursday accused the United States of trying to influence its election process by funding opposition groups in advance of Vladimir Putin's expected return to the Kremlin in the weekend poll.

The charges came as officials braced for mass protests that have been called for the day after Sunday's election in which the Russian strongman is expected to breeze his way past four weak rivals to a third presidential term.

The activist who has become a focal point of the protest movement against Vladimir Putin on Thursday laid out his vision for a Russia free of corruption, days ahead of presidential polls.

Alexei Navalny, a 35-year-old minority shareholder activist who has become known for his crusading blog against corruption, is not standing in Sunday's vote but is seen by many in the opposition as an alternative future leader.

Russia on Thursday welcomed a decision by the new leadership in its neighbor North Korea to suspend nuclear tests and its uranium enrichment program in exchange for U.S. food aid.

"We particularly welcome the decision of North Korea to impose a moratorium on nuclear weapons testing and also on uranium enrichment," the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Gulf foreign ministers will meet their Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in the Saudi capital next week to discuss developments in Syria, Kuwait's foreign minister said on Thursday.

"A meeting will be held with the Russian foreign minister and the foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council on March 7 in Riyadh," Sheikh Sabah Khaled al-Sabah told Kuwaiti MPs.

A Syrian opposition leader voiced skepticism on Wednesday over plans for a new U.N. Security Council resolution demanding humanitarian access to protest cities where thousands have been killed.

"It is better to have a meeting between the interested countries and to have a political compromise," Haitham Manaa from the National Coordination Committee for Democratic Change (NCCDC) told Agence France Presse on the sidelines of a meeting in Rome.

Vladimir Putin on Wednesday accused the Russian opposition of preparing dirty tricks to discredit this weekend's presidential poll, saying they would have to respect the view of the majority in the vote.

Putin attacked Russia's nascent protest movement with characteristic venom in a display of confidence ahead of Sunday's poll which he is expected to win to claim a third term in the Kremlin after his stint as premier.

A bare-chested Vladimir Putin strokes the bottom of an Olympic gymnast and overdoses on Botox as his wife Lyudmila takes refuge in a monastery -- in a new staging of a play at a Moscow theater.

The play -- staged ahead of March 4 polls where Putin is expected to win back the presidency -- takes plenty of inspiration from Internet gossip and breaks almost every remaining taboo about the Russian leader's personal life.

Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat stressed that the cabinet is asked to meet the interests of the Lebanese citizens and priorities instead of engaging in useless debates.

“The citizens must have their priorities met, especially (in) the electricity” sector, Jumblat told An Nahar newspaper on Wednesday.

The United States is drawing up a new draft U.N. Security Council resolution on Syria demanding humanitarian access to protest cities where thousands have been killed, diplomats said Tuesday.

If put to a vote it would be the third time Western nations have tried to get a Security Council resolution on the 11 month old crisis.

France on Tuesday urged Russia and China to accept a new U.N. Security Council resolution on halting the violence in Syria to allow in humanitarian aid.

"A resolution for a humanitarian ceasefire and access for humanitarian aid in the most threatened areas is under discussion at the Security Council. We can hope that China and Russia will not veto this resolution," Foreign Minister Alain Juppe told RTL radio.