U.S. should grant visa to Russian tycoon, says Putin

PARIS (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says the United States should explain its refusal to grant a visa to Russia's richest man, metals magnate Oleg Deripaska, or simply give him one.

"He runs multi-billion businesses in many countries of the world. Why do they limit his movements ? If he did something, show us the proof, if you have nothing to show, lift the restrictions," Putin said in an interview with the newspaper Le Monde, published on Saturday, which was attended by Reuters.

Deripaska's company Basic Element is a leader in the aluminum industry.

(Reporting by Gleb Bryanski; editing by Andrew Dobbie)