US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has applied to Russia for political asylum, a Russian official says.
Foreign ministry consul Kim Shevchenko said the request was made on Sunday night. The Kremlin has made no comment.
The 30-year-old former CIA analyst is believed to be holed up in a Moscow airport hotel. He is wanted by the US.
Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow "never hands over anybody anywhere and has no intention of doing so".
"If [Snowden] wants to go somewhere and there are those who would take him, he is welcome to do so," he told a news conference.
"If he wants to stay here, there is one condition: He must stop his activities aimed at inflicting damage on our American partners, no matter how strange it may sound coming from my lips."
The US has not yet made any comment on the latest developments.
President Barack Obama, speaking earlier in Tanzania, said Washington and Moscow had held "high level" discussions about Mr Snowden.
"We don't have an extradition treaty with Russia," he said. "On the other hand, Mr Snowden, we understand, has travelled there without a valid passport and legal papers.
"And we are hopeful the Russian government makes decisions based on the normal procedures regarding international travel and the normal interactions law enforcement have."
'Ironclad assurances'
According to Russia's Interfax news agency, Mr Snowden's application for asylum was handed to a consular official at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport late on Sunday evening.
The application was delivered by Sarah Harrison, a member of the Wikileaks legal team acting as Mr Snowden's representative, Kim Shevchenko was quoted by the news agency saying.
Russia's Federal Migration Service has denied the reports.
The LA Times quoted a Russian foreign ministry official as saying Mr Snowden had applied to 15 countries for asylum.
Mr Snowden has reportedly been in the transit area of Sheremetyevo Airport since arriving there from Hong Kong on 23 June.
He flew there soon after revealing himself to be the source behind the leaking of thousands of classified documents showing the extent of US email and telephone surveillance.
It was thought he had been seeking asylum in Ecuador, whose embassy in London is sheltering Wikileaks founder Julian Assange who is also wanted by the US.
Mr Snowden faces charges of espionage in the US.
His father, Lon Snowden, in a letter to the attorney general seen by the BBC at the weekend, said he thought his son would return voluntarily to the US if there were "ironclad assurances that his constitutional rights would be honored".
'Bugging friends unacceptable'
Meanwhile, Washington is facing the fall-out over claims published at the weekend of alleged spying by the US security services on the embassies and missions of its EU allies, including France, Italy and Greece.
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