Vladimir Putin made his first public comment on Friday night’s attack in Moscow only on Saturday afternoon, with the Russian president echoing other officials’ assertions that the suspects were trying to flee to Ukraine and adding that those who ordered the attack would be punished

The main elements of Vladimir Putin’s speech:

• All arrested perpetrators tried to escape to Ukraine
• All those responsible for the Moscow attack will be punished

the article is being updated

It was the first public appearance of the Russian president since the attack.

Russian state broadcasters prepared all night to broadcast Vladimir Putin’s speech about the terrorist attack in Moscow, but in the end missed it, sources at several television stations told the independent Russian publication The Insider.

In the first half of the day, the Kremlin only reported that the special services had informed the president about the development of the situation. The Russian presidency also reported that Putin discussed the fight against terrorism with his Belarusian ally, President Alexander Lukashenko.