"In this regard, of course, judging by the ongoing investigation, we have every reason to believe that the main goal of the perpetrators of this bloody, terrible terrorist act in Moscow was precisely to cause harm to our unity. No other goals are visible, they simply do not exist," Putin said at the XII Congress of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia.
The shooting and fire occurred on the evening of March 22 before a concert at Crocus City Hall in the Moscow suburb of Krasnogorsk. A Sputnik correspondent who witnessed the events reported that several men in camouflage and without masks burst into the hall, shooting people at close range and throwing incendiary devices. According to the latest data from the Emergencies Ministry, 144 people died. March 24 was declared a national day of mourning.
Four perpetrators of the terrorist attack were detained on March 23 in the Bryansk region. Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that they were trying to flee and were heading towards Ukraine, where a "window" had been prepared for them to cross the border on the Ukrainian side. A Moscow court issued an arrest warrant for them.
The president noted that a total of 11 people have been detained, and law enforcement agencies are working to uncover the entire support base of the terrorists. According to him, the terrorist act was committed at the hands of radical Islamists. Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB), Alexander Bortnikov, noted that the Islamists alone could not have prepared the terrorist attack, but that they were helped. He noted that preliminary data from the detainees confirms the Ukrainian trail, and Russian special services believe that the United States, United Kingdom, and Ukraine are behind the terrorist attack.
Putin emphasized that Russia experienced not only a carefully planned terrorist act, but the prepared and organized mass murder of innocent people. The president stressed that all perpetrators, organizers, and masterminds of the crime will face fair and inevitable punishment.
Further, Putin highlighted that the unity of the Russia's multi-ethnic society is a crucial condition for the country's success.
"The most important condition for our common success... is the unity of the multi-ethnic society. This is the main, fundamental condition for our success," Putin said.
Russian Economy Not Being Put on War Footing, Despite Current Difficulties
The Russian economy is not being put on a war footing, despite the current difficulties, Vladimir Putin said.
"I would like to draw your attention to the fact that despite all the difficulties of today, we are not putting the economy to a war footing, there is no such thing," Putin said at the congress of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia.
Russia Compelled to Defend Its Interests by Force
Russia has been placed in such conditions where it is forced to defend its interests by armed means, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.
"Everyone understands the conditions we live in. The country is forced to defend its interests, its people, its future, its sovereignty by force," Putin said at the congress of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Russia.
Russia Cannot Be Object of Terrorist Attacks by Islamic Fundamentalists
Russia cannot be the object of terrorist attacks by Islamic fundamentalists, Vladimir Putin said.
"Russia cannot be the object of terrorist attacks by Islamic fundamentalists. We have a country that is a unique example of inter-confessional harmony and unity, inter-religious unity, inter-ethnic unity," he noted.