Putin accuses Ukraine of carrying out ‘terrorist attack’ on Crimea bridge

MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday accused Ukrainian intelligence of carrying out what he said was a “terrorist attack” on the Kerch Bridge.

At least three people were killed in Saturday’s explosion on the road and rail crossing that is Russia’s sole land link with Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula it illegally annexed in 2014.

“There is no doubt that this is a terrorist attack aimed at destroying critical civilian infrastructure of the Russian Federation,” Putin said during a meeting with Alexander Bastrykin, head of the Russian Investigative Committee.

He said the “special services of Ukraine” were the “authors and performers” of the blast.

Bastrykin said investigators have found evidence of Ukrainian involvement, adding that some Russian citizens and nationals of “foreign states” aided Ukrainian intelligence in the attack.

The explosion is being investigated as a terrorism case, he told Putin.

While Kyiv has not explicitly claimed responsibility, multiple statements by top Ukrainian officials in the hours after Saturday’s attack pointed to the possibility, including one from presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak, who said the blast was just “the beginning.”

• Crimean Bridge
• Explosion
• Vladimir Putin