UPDATE - Putin calls Ukraine's drone attack on Moscow 'clear sign of terrorist activity'

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By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Ukraine's drone attack against civilian facilities in Moscow is "a clear sign of terrorist activity."

Commenting on the attack during his visit to the Zotov cultural center in Moscow, Putin said: "The Kyiv regime chose another path -- the path of attempts to intimidate Russia, to intimidate Russia’s citizens, and of attacks on residential buildings. This is of course a clear sign of terrorist activity."

The president assessed as "satisfying" the work of the Russian air defense systems, adding the Russian military experienced similar problems at Khmeimim Air Base in Syria.

"In general, it's clear what has to be done to strengthen the air defense of the capital, and we will do it," he said.

Putin added that Ukrainian citizens have to realize what the current leadership of their country is pushing for with "attempts to disrupt the operation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant or use 'dirty' devices related to nuclear technology.”

"It's not even (the air defense of Moscow) that bothers me so much as the attempts to provoke a response from Russia. Apparently, (the drone attack) is designed for this. They are provoking us to mirror their actions. We'll see what can be done," he said.

Putin said that from the very beginning, after separating from the Soviet Union, Ukraine was controlled by people who, "being led by the West, took the path of not just confronting Russia, but creating an 'anti-Russia' on that territory."

The president also reminded that while Ukraine was emerging as an independent state, it declared itself a neutral state, which was written in its Declaration of Independence.

"Instead, they gradually turned to a different path: joining NATO, an organization that is hostile to Russia and was created solely to fight the Soviet Union and Russia," he noted.

He recalled that in 2008, Ukrainian leaders "without any external signs, without any military-political tension" announced that they were joining NATO, followed by NATO’s announcement that its "doors were open to Ukraine."

In 2014, after a coup, the new authorities in Ukraine "unleashed a war and military operations in Donbass," which continued despite promises to resolve the issue through peaceful means, he said.

"Now they are openly admitting that they were deceiving us only in order to build up their military capability and unleash hostilities, including against Crimea. Now, as you know, they are using drones for attacks," he said.

According to Putin's assessment, the drone strike was Ukraine's response to a Russian strike on a military intelligence headquarters in Ukraine which was carried out two or three days ago.

"Obviously, no matter what we say, they will always point fingers at Russia, although this is wrong. We did not unleash this war. Let me repeat that the Kyiv regime unleashed it in 2014 in Donbass. Nor are we using the means that the Ukrainian ‘wheeler-dealers’ are resorting to," he said.

In a separate statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry condemned the attack, saying "using terror methods" had become the usual practice for Kyiv.

"Such attacks, having no meaning from a military point of view, seem to be directed exclusively against the civilian population in order to sow panic among civilians," it said.

The ministry added that the West's support pushes Ukraine to commit "reckless crimes" and that “assurances from NATO officials that the Kyiv regime will not strike deep into Russian territory have turned out to be completely hypocritical.”

"The Russian side reserves the right to take the toughest measures in response to the terrorist attacks of the Kyiv regime," it added.

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu announced Tuesday that eight Ukrainian drones took part in the attack and all of them were destroyed.