MOSCOW Russia has learnt that the Olympics can be used as a tool of political pressure and ethnic discrimination, President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.

"The Games can be used as an instrument of political pressure against people who have nothing to do with politics. And as gross and in fact ethnic discrimination," Putin said.

Last week the Russian Olympic Committee was banned by the International Olympic Committee for recognising regional organisations from four territories that Russia said it had annexed from Ukraine.

Although the IOC said the Olympic committees of Russia and Belarus would not receive an official invitation to the Paris Games like other countries later this month, a decision on their participation would be made at a later date.

(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Maxim Rodionov; Editing by Kevin Liffey)