‘Shifted to terror’ Putin accuses West of plotting to kill journalists
04/26/2022, 14:50
In a speech to prosecutors, President Putin calls for tough action against Western spies. They allegedly wanted to divide the country and were involved in assassination plots against Russian journalists. An attack on a well-known TV presenter had just been foiled.
Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Western countries of wanting to destroy Russia. In a speech to Russia’s top prosecutors, Putin accused the West of inciting attacks on Russian journalists. He called on prosecutors to crack down on what he described as conspiracies by foreign spies to divide the country and discredit Russian forces through foreign media organizations and social media.
In early March, the Russian leadership tightened the rules for allowed reporting so much that several media outlets withdrew their correspondents. Putin has now said that the FSB’s secret service stopped a “terrorist group” from trying to assassinate Russian TV journalist Vladimir Soloviev. “They have switched to terror – they are preparing to murder our journalists,” Putin said.
Soloviev, on whose talk shows Ukraine is often denigrated, could not be reached for comment. In a message to Telegram, the Ukrainian secret service SBU rejected allegations that it planned to assassinate Soloviev. Putin added that the West has realized that Ukraine cannot defeat Russia in the war and wants to destroy Russia from within. “That doesn’t work,” he said.