MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday warned Ukraine that there would be a harsh response if there were any further attacks such as that on the Crimean Bridge.
Following are Putin’s remarks, translated by Reuters, at the opening of a meeting of Russia’s Security Council.
“This morning, at the suggestion of the ministry of defence and according to the plans of the Russian general staff, a massive strike was carried out with long-range high-precision air, sea and land-based weapons on Ukraine’s energy, military command and communications facilities.
“If attempts to carry out terrorist attacks on our territory continue, Russia’s responses will be harsh and, in terms of their scale, will correspond to the level of threats posed by the Russian Federation. No one should have any doubts about this.”
“Forensic and other data, as well as operational information, indicate that the explosion on Oct. 8 was a terrorist act. A terrorist attack aimed at destroying Russia’s critical civilian infrastructure. It is obvious that the Ukrainian secret services ordered, organised and carried out the terrorist attack aimed at destroying Russia’s critical civilian infrastructure.
“A number of terrorist attacks and attempts at similar crimes have been committed against our country’s electric power facilities and gas transportation infrastructure, including an attempt to undermine one of the sections of the TurkStream gas transmission system. All this is proved by objective data, including testimony by the detained perpetrators of these terrorist attacks themselves.
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“Representatives of Russia are not allowed to investigate the causes of the explosions and the destruction of the international gas transmission systems passing along the bottom of the Baltic Sea. But we all know well the ultimate beneficiary of this crime.
Thus, the Kyiv regime, by its actions, put itself on a par with international terrorist groups. With the most odious groups. It is simply impossible to leave crimes of this kind unanswered.”
(Reporting by Reuters; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)