Putin says bridge attack shows Ukraine's leaders do not want peace

MOSCOW, June 4: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that he did not think Ukraine’s leaders wanted peace after accusing them of ordering a deadly bomb attack in Russia that killed seven and injured 115 more just a day before talks in Turkey.

A highway bridge over a railway line in the Bryansk region of western Russia was blown up at 10:33 pm (1933 GMT) on Saturday night just as a passenger train carrying 388 passengers to Moscow was passing underneath, Russian investigators said.

Russia’s top state investigator said Ukraine was responsible for planting the three bombs in the Bryansk bridge attack, five bombs in the attack against a bridge in neighbouring Kursk and another bomb attack against a bridge in Bryansk on Sunday.

In some of his most hawkish remarks in recent months on the outlook for peace, Putin said the attacks had been directed against civilians and accused the Kyiv leadership of being a “terrorist organisation” supported by powers who were becoming “terrorist accomplices”.

“The current Kyiv regime does not need peace at all,” Putin said at a meeting with senior officials. “What is there to talk about? How can we negotiate with those who rely on terror?”

Ukraine has not commented on the bridge attacks. It denies it targets civilians, as does Russia, though civilians have been killed by both sides.

Kyiv has similarly accused Moscow of not seriously wanting peace, citing as evidence Russian resistance to an immediate ceasefire. Russia says certain conditions must first be met.

In the remarks released by the Kremlin, Putin did not mention the high-profile Ukrainian operation – which unfolded on Sunday – to attack strategic bomber aircraft at Russian air bases.

The attacks on bridges and the nuclear-capable bombers came just before Russia and Ukraine met for direct peace talks in Istanbul where Moscow set out what the United States has called “maximalist” aims.

Putin suggested a ceasefire would simply be used by Ukraine and its Western backers to rearm. Russia’s negotiator at the talks said Ukraine had passed him a list of 339 children Kyiv says have been abducted by Moscow.

WAR HEATING UP

Before Putin spoke, other Russian officials said that military options were “on the table” for its response to Ukrainian attacks deep inside Russia and accused the West of being involved in them.

“We urge London and Washington to react in such a way as to stop further escalation,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying. Ryabkov oversees relations with the U.S. and arms control.

British and U.S. officials have said they had no prior knowledge of the weekend attacks on Russian nuclear-capable long-range bombers.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s Ukraine envoy said the risk of escalation from the war was “going way up” after the attacks on the nuclear-capable bombers. A week earlier, Trump rebuked Putin over a fierce aerial attack on Ukraine.

At the Putin meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov suggested that Russia should not give in to the clearly provocative attacks by Ukraine and should use both negotiations and other means to achieve its aims in the military operation.

Putin appeared to agree with Lavrov but in later remarks said he would be speaking to security officials about the situation.