Putin Calls Crimea Blast 'Terrorism' as Concerns of Nuclear Escalation Grow

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Sunday that the blast that damaged the Kerch Strait Bridge—the span connecting Russia with Russian-occupied Crimea—was an "act of terrorism" committed by Ukrainian officials.

"There is no doubt. This is an act of terrorism aimed at destroying critically important civilian infrastructure," Putin said in a video address, according to Reuters. "This was devised, carried out and ordered by the Ukrainian special services."

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, the explosion was mocked and celebrated by Ukrainian officials.

Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs made comments similar to Putin's on Saturday, with its spokesperson, Maria Zakharova, saying "reaction towards destruction of civilian infrastructure is a testament to its [Ukraine's] terrorist nature."

Putin's statement on Sunday comes as Western officials have in recent days, raised concerns about the nuclear threat posed by Moscow. In a Thursday speech, President Joe Biden said Putin is "not joking" about recent threats to use tactical nuclear weapons, warning such a decision could result in "Armageddon."

"He is not joking when he talks about potential use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological and chemical weapons, because his military is, you might say, significantly underperforming," Biden said. "I don't think there's any such thing as the ability to easily use tactical nuclear weapons and not end up with Armageddon."

Biden added that Putin's rhetoric had put the world at the highest risk of nuclear destruction since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, a tense period that nearly resulted in a war between the U.S. and the Soviet Union after it was discovered that the Soviets had secretly deployed nuclear weapons to the island nation.

Responding to the Russian leader's remarks, retired U.S. Army General Mark Hertling said on Twitter: "The military or a Hague rep would say it's actually a well-planned & precisely executed conventional attack on undefended & valid strategic military targets. Vlad might not recognize those."

Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to the Ukraine's minister of internal affairs, quoted a Saturday tweet from author Stephen King.

"I can just quote @StephenKing in reply to this: "After nine months of killing and in many cases torturing civilians; after razing whole towns; the Russians call blowing up a bridge 'terrorism'..." he wrote.

Following the explosion on the Kerch Strait Bridge, Gerashchenko told Newsweek on Saturday that the risk "is high" that Putin will escalate his attack on the Eastern European country. He called on the West to provide Ukraine with more weapons to fight the Russians.

"The possibility of escalation from Putin's side is high. We ask to give us more weapons. We don't ask to fight for us," he said. "Your governments shouldn't wait and keep all the weapons, ammunition and vehicles in warehouses. Send it all to Ukraine so we can finish the war."

Newsweek has reached out to the Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministries for comment.

Meanwhile, Julia Davis, a columnist for The Daily Beast and creator of the Russian Media Monitor, on Sunday posted video footage of Russian-state television pundits discussing the attack. Andrey Kartapalov, head of the State Duma Committee on Defense, said the bridge is "not only a military object," but a "symbol of Russia's pride."

"They're striking at symbols," he said before referring to the Moskva, a Russian warship that Ukrainian officials claimed to have sunk with a missile in April. However, Russia didn't officially claim that the ship was struck by Ukrainians and instead said that the ship sunk after a fire onboard caused ammunition to explode.

"Meanwhile on Russian state TV, they're drawing parallels between the Crimean bridge, the warship Moskva and Putin, as Russia's main symbols. They must have forgotten their own lies about Moskva. People are being urged to unite around Putin and march into battle when called," Davis tweeted.

This story was updated on 10/09/2022 at 4:37 p.m. EST.