The director of the FSB called the head of the State Government of Ukraine a “legitimate target”.

The head of the FSB of Russia, Alexander Bortnikov, said on Tuesday that the special services of Ukraine allegedly contributed to the terrorist attack in the Crocus City Hall concert hall near Moscow on March 22, which, according to the latest data, killed at least 139 people.

Speaking in Moscow on Tuesday, Bortnikov admitted that the Russian investigation has not yet established the mastermind of the attack, and that its executors were, as he put it, radical Islamists. Nevertheless, Bortnikov expressed his conviction that the special services of Ukraine had something to do with the terrorist attack. Literally, he said about the “engagement” of Kyiv.

Bortnikov referred to the fact that the suspects in the terrorist attack, trying to hide, were driving a car towards Ukraine, and also that Ukraine allegedly “trained militants in the territory of the Middle East.” He also called to recognize the Security Service of Ukraine as a terrorist organization.

Responding to a question about whether the head of the second Ukrainian special service – GUR – Kirill Budanov is a “legitimate target”, the director of the FSB said that anyone who commits crimes “against Russia and Russian citizens” is a legitimate target. To the question “why are they still alive?” he answered: “Everything is ahead.”

Earlier, the Secretary of the Security Council of Russia Nikolay Patrushev answered a reporter’s question, phrased as “Ukraine or ISIL?” (that is, the recognized terrorist group “Islamic State”, which declared that it was behind the attack)” answered “Of course, Ukraine”.

The authorities of Ukraine categorically deny involvement in the terrorist attack. They claim that Moscow is trying to blame Ukraine in order to justify the war being waged against it. The USA and other Western countries stated that there was no evidence of Ukraine’s involvement in the terrorist attack and that there was no reason to suspect that it was carried out by the Afghan branch of IS.

Bortnikov admitted that the United States gave Russia information about the preparation of a terrorist attack, but that, according to him, “was of a general nature.” He also indirectly accused Western special services of being involved in the attack, saying that their goal was to “create panic in society in Russia.”

On suspicion of the attack, 4 natives of Tajikistan, allegedly directly attacking Crocus, and several others were arrested. There are no Ukrainians among them. A video shot by the attackers themselves and a message about responsibility for the terrorist attack were published by IS-related resources. All the accusations of the Russian authorities against Ukraine at the moment are based on the fact that the suspects were detained in the Bryansk region, where they left from Moscow after the terrorist attack. This region borders Ukraine and Belarus, and the attackers were allegedly traveling to the Ukrainian border.

The investigation did not officially put forward any versions.