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Corporate media somehow missed Russian President Vladimir Putin's shocking charge, at his press conference Friday:
"We even see attempts at perpetrating terrorist attacks in the Russian Federation, including - I am not sure if this was made public - attempts to carry out terrorist attacks near our nuclear facilities, nuclear power plants in the Russian Federation. I am not even talking about the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant."
Putin was answering what seemed to be a canned question about Russia's "restraint" amid, what the questioner called increasing "strikes, raids and acts of terror even on Russian territory. We are hearing all the time very aggressive statements that the final goal of Kiev and the West is Russia's disintegration. Meanwhile, many think that Russia's response to all of this is very restrained. Why is that?"
Putin addressed the question frontally
"With regard to our restrained response, I would not say it was restrained - after all, a special military operation is not just another warning, but a military operation. In the course of this, we are seeing attempts to perpetrate terrorist attacks and damage our civilian infrastructure.
"Indeed, we were quite restrained in our response, but that will not last forever. Recently, Russian Armed Forces delivered a couple of sensitive blows in that area [civilian infrastructure]. Let's call them warning shots. If the situation continues like that, our response will be more impactful. Terrorist attacks are a serious matter. We see this in the killing of officials in the liberated territories, we even see attempts at perpetrating terrorist attacks in the Russian Federation."
This is the context in which Putin pointedly included (as cited above) "attempts to carry out terrorist attacks near our nuclear facilities, nuclear power plants in the Russian Federation." He added:
"We are monitoring the situation and will do our best to prevent a negative scenario from unfolding. We will respond if they fail to realize that these approaches are unacceptable. They are, in fact, no different than terrorist attacks."
Putin on Western Goals
Responding to the questioner's allusion to "very aggressive statements that the final goal of Kiev and the West is Russia's disintegration, Putin added:
"They have always been seeking the dissolution of our country - this is very true. It is unfortunate that at some point they decided to use Ukraine for these purposes. In effect - I am answering your question now - we launched our special military operation to prevent events from taking this turn. This is what some US-led Western countries have always been seeking - to create an anti-Russia enclave and rock the boat, threaten Russia from this direction. In essence, our main goal is to prevent such developments."
Putin has long been saying that, while the US professes to be concerned about Ukraine's security, it is using the ex-Soviet country as a "tool" in its efforts to contain Russia. Actually, Putin finds himself in some good company with this assertion. Would you believe that company includes a former Director of the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency?
Following the US orchestrated coup in Kiev in early 2014, the "December 2015 National Security Strategy" (of DIA) said the following:
"The Kremlin is convinced the United States is laying the groundwork for regime change in Russia, a conviction further reinforced by the events in Ukraine. Moscow views the United States as the critical driver behind the crisis in Ukraine and believes that the overthrow of former Ukrainian President Yanukovych is the latest move in a long-established pattern of U.S.-orchestrated regime change efforts." - LT Gen Vincent Stewart, Director, DIA
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