Russian governors threaten missile attacks on Ukraine's 'big cities' in a 'desire to seek revenge' for the Crimea bridge explosion as top Putin propagandist calls for total war and return to brutal Stalinist-era operations

Alluding to an enemy within, Solovyov called for a return of the notorious Stalin-era SMERSH counter-intelligence to crush all internal opposition to a full-scale war against Ukraine. SMERSH, whose motto was 'Death to Spies', was a conglomeration of counterintelligence agencies used by Stalin to root out and obliterate those trying to subvert his regime during and after World War II. A pair of Russian governors meanwhile spoke of a 'healthy desire to seek revenge' and warned that Ukraine will suffer more rocket attacks on its large cities following the explosion. Russia's deputy PM this morning deployed a team of divers to the bridge, where they will spend the day inspecting its foundations and searching for evidence