Russia Will Kill Kyiv Regime 'Terrorists' for Bridge Explosion—Medvedev

Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russia's Security Council, has said Russia must respond to an attack on a strategic bridge by "killing terrorists."

An explosion damaged the Kerch Bridge, which connects Russia to its annexed territory of Crimea, on Saturday.

The Russian Federation Investigative Committee said a truck exploded on the bridge, causing three deaths.

Medvedev, a former Russian president, called it "a terrorist act and sabotage committed by the criminal Kiev regime."

Ukraine has not taken responsibility for the blast, but Ukrainian officials celebrated it online.

"Russia can only respond to this crime by directly killing terrorists, as is the custom elsewhere in the world," Medvedev said, according to state news agency Tass. "This is what Russian citizens expect."

Early Monday, several explosions rocked Kyiv following months of relative calm in the Ukrainian capital.

It came after Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday called the blast on the Kerch Bridge "an act of terrorism."

"There is no doubt. This is an act of terrorism aimed at destroying critically important civilian infrastructure," Putin said in a video address.

"This was devised, carried out and ordered by the Ukrainian special services."

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, responded: "Putin accuses Ukraine of terrorism? Sounds too cynical even for Russia," he wrote on Twitter.

"Less than 24 hours ago (Russian) planes hit residential area of Zaporizhzhia with 12 missiles, killing 13 people and injuring more than 50. There is only one terrorist state here and the whole world knows who it is."

The damage to the bridge, a major supply route to Moscow's forces in southern Ukraine, came amid mounting battlefield defeats for Russia and prompted fears that Russia could escalate its assault on Ukraine as a result.

Medvedev and Putin's response came after growing anger in Russia over their silence, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

In an assessment over the weekend, the think tank said "some nationalist voices noted that Putin and his close circle are failing to immediately address the attack on a symbolic bridge, voicing direct criticism of Putin for the first time."

The report added that one military blogger warned that if the Russian president fails to undertake retaliatory actions, it "will be mistaken for the weakness of the president himself."

It added that some also criticized Medvedev for his silence given that he had previously said that any attacks on the Kerch Bridge would violate "red lines."

Russian and Ukrainian officials have been contacted for comment.