The recent explosive sabotage of railway tracks in the Bryansk and Kursk Oblasts is, without a doubt, a terrorist act. And the decisions to carry out such crimes were, of course, made in Ukraine at the political level.

What do I want to emphasize in this regard? Naturally, in armed conflicts — and, regrettably, this is always the case — civilians suffer. But what happened in Bryansk, in the Bryansk Oblast, was a deliberate strike against civilians — and under all international norms, such actions are classified as terrorism.

All the crimes committed against civilians — including women and children — on the eve of another round of peace negotiations proposed by us in Istanbul were clearly aimed at disrupting the negotiation process. The strike on civilians was intentional.

This only confirms our concerns that the already illegitimate regime in Kiev, which once seized power, is gradually transforming into a terrorist organization — and that its sponsors are becoming accomplices to terrorists.

Let us recall: not long ago, the Ukrainian authorities and their allies were dreaming of a strategic defeat for Russia on the battlefield. Now, faced with enormous losses and retreating along the entire line of combat contact, Kiev’s top brass is trying to intimidate Russia by resorting to terrorist attacks. And at the same time, they are requesting a cessation of hostilities for 30, even 60 days, and requesting a meeting at the highest level.

But how can such meetings be held under these circumstances? What is there to discuss? Who negotiates with those who rely on terror — with terrorists? And why would we reward them by granting them a respite in hostilities, which would only be used to flood the regime with Western weapons, continue forced mobilization, and prepare further terrorist attacks like those carried out in the Bryansk and Kursk Oblasts?