The ISIS Terrorist Attack in Moscow Changes Everything for Putin — Why the US Congress Must Act Now

Unsurprisingly, Vladimir Putin took advantage of the Friday ISIS terrorist attack in Moscow that killed at least 133 people and injured 145 at a concert hall on the outskirts of the city.

In a televised address that took him 24 hours to make, Putin blamed Ukrainians, suggesting that “the Ukrainian side” had “prepared a window” for the terrorists to cross the border from Russia into Ukraine.

“They tried to hide and move towards Ukraine, where, according to preliminary data, a window was prepared for them from the Ukrainian side to cross the state border,” Putin said.

We have reached a point when even ISIS has to fight Russian disinformation. ISIS took credit immediately after the attack. On Telegram, the Islamic State said the shooting came within the context of the “raging war” between Islamic State and countries fighting Islam.

Putin is using this terrorist attack to bolster support for the war domestically and mobilize further troops. At least 300,000 troops are being mobilized primarily from reservists, re-contracted conscripts, and staff from defense contractors.

Russia’s war has already claimed the lives of at least 500,000 on their own side alone. How many more is Putin willing to sacrifice? Well, with this terrorist attack, Putin has been once again given legitimacy to do whatever it takes to defeat his imagined enemy in Ukraine.