The director of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) accused Ukraine, the U.S., and Britain of being behind the concert hall attack, which killed at least 139 people.
"We believe that the action was prepared by both the Islamist radicals themselves and was facilitated by Western special services," said FSB head Alexander Bortnikov.
"The special services of Ukraine are directly related to this," Bortnikov argued.
When a reporter asked about the possible involvement of Ukraine, the U.S. and U.K., Bortnikov replied, "We think that's the case. In any case, we are now talking about the texture that we have. This is general information," according to Retuers.
Addressing the nation on Saturday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that radical Islamists perpetrated the attack but questioned why they did so unless they were encouraged by others.
"We know that the crime was carried out by the hand of radical Islamists with an ideology that the Muslim world has fought for centuries," Putin said. "We want to know who ordered it."
The U.S. last month shared intelligence with Moscow about a planned attack in the city, but Bortnikov, when asked about the information, said it was of a "general nature."
On March 7, the United States issued a warning of a potential terrorist attack in Russia, urging Americans there to avoid mass gatherings, based in part on intelligence reporting about the possible activity inside Russia of the Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K), the Afghanistan and Pakistan arm of the militant group. Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking to the FSB board a week ago, dismissed that warning as an attempt by the West to “destabilize Russia.”
The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for the attack, and Russia has charged four suspects, all citizens of Tajikistan, with carrying out the rampage. Bortnikov on Tuesday confirmed that the United States had passed on information about a potential attack but said it was “of general nature.”
“We responded to this information and took appropriate measures to prevent such things,” Bortnikov said. “Unfortunately, the actions we carried out in relation to specific groups and specific individuals — this information was not confirmed at that time,” he added. He did not provide any details about what groups the FSB targeted. (The Washington Post)
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Senior Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak called Russia’s latest claims that Kyiv was involved “lies”—a point U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller agreed with.
"We’ve made that clear that there is no evidence at all that Ukraine was involved in this, because Ukraine was not involved in this,” he told reporters during a briefing. “And I would say that those comments by Russian officials, including from President Putin, are just propaganda to justify their continued aggression against Ukraine."
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron, meanwhile, said Russia’s claims “are utter nonsense."
Russia’s claims about the West and Ukraine on the Crocus City Hall attack are utter nonsense.
— David Cameron (@David_Cameron) March 26, 2024
We support US statements which make clear that Daesh bears sole responsibility for this attack.
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