Putin says ex-Soviet states could face terrorism

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was under threat of terrorist attacks.

"We know that nearly all of our countries could become potential targets for terrorists," Putin said at a Moscow meeting with the heads of security and intelligence services of the collection of former Soviet republics.

Putin’s statement comes days after reports suggest the culprit behind a deadly explosion on St. Petersburg’s metro was a Kyrgyz-origin Russian national.

Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan took part in Wednesday’s meeting, according to the Kremlin.

"Our countries face many other threats too, including organized crime and drug trafficking, corruption, and the impact of forces acting from outside and attempting in one way or another to influence internal political developments in our countries," said Putin.

Putin recalled Monday's "tragic" event in St. Petersburg, where an explosion claimed at least 14 lives and caused dozens of injuries.

The Russian Investigative Committee later described the blast as a "terrorist attack”.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday Russia would continue to fight against terrorism despite a lack of international cooperation, according to the TASS news agency.

"But despite this, Russia is still determined to continue its efforts to combat terrorism," Peskov told reporters.

He also denied claims Moscow had called for nationwide anti-terrorism rallies. "The Kremlin does not organize rallies," he said.