World Bulletin / News Desk

Twelve Russian intelligence officers have been charged with hacking Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign and the Democratic Party in a stunning indictment just days before President Donald Trump meets with Vladimir Putin.

Democratic leaders immediately called for Trump to cancel Monday's scheduled meeting with the Russian president in Helsinki, but the White House said the summit would go ahead.

The 29-page indictment issued Friday accuses members of the Russian military intelligence agency known as the GRU of carrying out "large-scale cyber operations" to steal Clinton campaign and Democratic Party documents and emails.

"There's no allegation in this indictment that any American citizen committed a crime," Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said in announcing the charges at a press conference in Washington.

He added that although "conspirators corresponded with several Americans during the course of the conspiracy through the internet," the indictment did not allege that Americans knew they were in contact with Russian intelligence officers.

Rosenstein said he briefed Trump about the indictment before Friday's announcement and that the timing was determined by "the facts, the evidence, and the law."

Trump on Saturday responded by blaming the administration of former president Barack Obama for failing to act.

"Why didn't they do something about it, especially when it was reported that President Obama was informed by the FBI in September, before the Election?" he tweeted.