Russia claimed the West, Kyiv ordered the Moscow terror attack. Now it has the problem of proving it

Russia has been firming up its narrative that Ukraine was behind a deadly terrorist attack in Moscow last week, a move that was widely expected by political experts who said Russia would likely use the tragedy to further domestic support for the war against Ukraine.

It's gone one step further, however, with senior Kremlin officials claiming that the West conspired with Ukraine to carry out the attack on the Crocus City Hall concert venue last Friday in which gunmen killed 139 people.

An investigation into the attack is ongoing, but the latest, outlandish accusations give Moscow a problem: It now has to find the evidence to back up its unsubstantiated claims.

What's particularly awkward for the Kremlin is that the Islamic State militant group has already claimed responsibility for the attack. Eight suspects, mostly nationals of Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, have been charged with terrorism offences and remanded in custody ahead of trial.

"Going forward, it is important to watch whether Russian investigators present any evidence of any alleged Ukrainian/Western involvement," said Andrius Tursa, central and eastern Europe advisor at consultancy Teneo.

"In such a case, Putin would likely have to follow through on his promises to punish those responsible for the attack, which could escalate the war in Ukraine and heighten tensions with the West," he said.

Ukraine denies any involvement in the attack, saying it was "absolutely predictable" that Moscow would look to blame it. The White House said Ukraine had "no involvement whatsoever" in the attack and that any claim to the contrary was "Kremlin propaganda." The U.K.'s Foreign Secretary David Cameron said on social media platform X "Russia's claims about the West and Ukraine on the