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Russian President Vladimir Putin,right, chairs a meeting with permanent members of the Security Council of the Russian Federation at the Belbek airport near the Black sea port of Sevastopol, Crimea, on Aug. 19, 2016.(Photo: Dmitry Astakhov, AFP/Getty Images)

Russian President Vladimir Putin, making a surprise visit Friday to the disputed Crimea peninsula, condemnedwhat he called "terrorist attacks" on the region by Ukraine but said the Kremlin did not intendto cut diplomatic ties with Kiev,Russian media reported.

Last week, Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) said it thwarted"terrorist attacks" in Crimea allegedly mounted byUkraines Defense Ministrys main intelligence directorate, according to the Tass news agency. It saidtwo Russian soldiers were killed in a purported cross-border raid.

I think its obvious that Kievs current authorities are not seeking ways to solve problems through negotiations, but have turned to terrorism, Putin said, callingthenew development "alarming,"RT.com reported.

In a screen shot from vidoe provided by Russian Federal Security Service Press Service, a handcuffed man identified as Yevgeny Panov, suspected of being involved in a group that Russia's Federal Security Service identified as Ukrainian 'saboteurs,' is led by officers in Crimea, on, Aug. 11, 2016. 5(Photo: Russian FSB Press Service/AP)

"We're not going to cut our relations, despite the reluctance of the current authorities in Kiev to have full diplomatic ties at ambassador level," hetoldmembers of the Security Council meeting in Sevastopol."We nevertheless will create opportunities for the development of contacts and their support.

It was Putin's firstpublic visit to the Crimea since it was forcibly annexed by Russia in 2014 in a move condemned by the U.S. and other Western countries.The visitcomes one week after he discussedwith the counciladditional security measures in the region, Tassreported.

The Russian leader saidUkraine has attempted "sabotage" in the areabecause of its "reluctance or inability" to implement agreements reached in Minsk last year to end armed conflicts in eastern Ukraine.

The FSB reported a group of "saboteurs" killed two Russian servicemen who were trying to detainthem onAug. 7 near the city of Armyansk, close to the Ukrainian border, according to Tass.The FSB said the "aborted terror attempts" were aimed at Crimea's critical infrastructure. The FSB also reported arresting a Ukrainian "infiltrator" who purportedly claimed Kiev was planning to target a bus stationand an airport in the port city of Simferopol, RT.com reported.

Although Russia has reportedly amassed thousands of troops on the border purportedly for military exercises,Russian military commanders have no plans to strike Ukrainian territory in response to the attacks, the Russian business daily Vedomosti reported this week, quoting a source close to the Defense Ministry.

On Thursday, Russian naval and land forces engaged in a logistics exercise ahead of bigger war games scheduled for next month.

About 2,500 troops and as many as 350 armored vehicles from Russia's Black Sea fleet were involved in the exercise.

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Putin, in Crimea, condemns 'terrorist attacks' by Ukraine