US Military Accused of Recruiting Militants for Terrorist Attacks in Russia, CIS Countries

The SVR said in a statement on Monday that 60 such terrorists with combat experience in the Middle East were selected this year in January and are undergoing a fast-track training course at the US base in Syria’s Al-Tanf, TASS reported.

"According to credible information received by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service, the US military is actively recruiting militants from extremist groups affiliated with (Daesh) and al-Qaeda to carry out terrorist attacks in Russia and CIS countries," the statement said.

The SVR reported that these militants are being taught to make and use improvised explosive devices, as well as subversive methods, with "particular emphasis on planning attacks on heavily guarded facilities, including foreign diplomatic missions."

According to the statement, the US plans to send the terrorists in small groups to the territory of Russia and the CIS countries to carry out terrorist attacks against diplomats, civil servants, law enforcement agents, and servicemen. The SVR said that this scheme will be conducted in cooperation with clandestine cells of international terrorist groups such as Hizb ut-Tahrir and Jamaat Ansarullah.

The SVR also reported that special attention was paid to the involvement of natives of the Russian North Caucasus and Central Asia. All this demonstrates the complete loss of any moral principles in the US security services. "Obsessed with the insane idea of ’exsanguinating’ Russia, Washington’s experts consider it acceptable to use terrorists directly for their own dirty purposes. Such actions put Washington on a par with major international terrorist groups," the SVR concluded.