Vladimir Putin
Belarus Prez says sanctions by West pushing Russia into World War III
"Now there is a lot of talk against the banking sector. Gas, oil, SWIFT. It's worse than war. This is pushing Russia into a third world war," Lukashenko said on Sunday, as quoted by local media. He added that a nuclear conflict could be the final outcome, the report said. Russia's military attack against Ukraine, ordered by Putin on February 24, has been condemned by Western nations and prompted a new wave of tough sanctions against Moscow.
Ukraine to send delegation for talks with Russia at Belarus border
The agreement to hold the talks was reached during a phone call on Sunday between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Xinhua news agency reported.
Putin places Russian nuclear deterrent forces on highest alert
The move was announced during Putin's meeting with Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu and Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov. "Western countries are not only taking unfriendly actions against our country in the economic area. I'm speaking about the illegitimate sanctions that everyone is well aware of. However, the top officials of the leading NATO countries also make aggressive statements against our country as well," Putin stated.
Putin praises his special forces for 'heroically carrying out their military duties'
Putin gave his "special gratitude" for troops involved in the "special operation to provide assistance to the people's republics of Donbas" - a reference to the Kremlin's propaganda line that it intervened in Ukraine to help pro-Russian separatists who were at risk of 'genocide' at the hands of the legitimate government, the report said.
China uneasy to defend Putin's methods
But there are tentative signs that China is uneasy at being seen to defend Putin's methods, and the potential disruption to the world economy, The Guardian reported. Putin may have shown his respect for China by delaying the invasion until after the Winter Olympics, but China was not consulted about the invasion. Chinese diplomats ridiculed forecasts of an invasion, and left many citizens in situ, the report said.
Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine is not quite going as per plan
It is too early to describe the Kremlin's operation to seize and subjugate Ukraine as a failure. The war has only just started. Putin may yet prevail. The Russian military enjoys overwhelming superiority over Ukraine's armed forces. It has numerous combat aircraft, a vast navy and 1,50,000 deployed troops. And yet by Saturday, it was clear Putin's blitzkrieg operation to remove Ukraine's pro-western government had run into unexpected difficulties.
Putin forgot a great WWII lesson that the best Soviet soldiers were Ukrainian
Ukrainian officials have pointed to the increasingly erratic behaviour of Putin himself. Speaking before the invasion, a senior Ukrainian intelligence official said Russia's president lived in a strange parallel reality. He had succumbed -- like dictators before him -- to believing his own version of the world, the report said. "Putin thinks that Ukraine's government is corrupt, western and irredeemably Russophobic," the official said.
US, Europe allies expel Russian banks from SWIFT in a dramatic escalation to isolate Putin
The White House, along with the European Commission, France, Germany, Italy, the UK and Canada, announced that they would expel certain Russian banks from SWIFT, the high-security network that connects thousands of financial institutions around the world, pledging to "collectively ensure that this war is a strategic failure for (Russian President Vladimir) Putin", CNN reported. Targeting the central bank would strike at the heart of Putin's years-long efforts to insulate his economy from sanctions, CNN reported.
Ukraine wipes out barbaric Chechen forces sent to assassinate Zelensky
The armed group -- famed for their barbaric violence and human rights abuses -- are said to have been obliterated after their convoy of 56 tanks was blown to smithereens near Hostomel, just northeast of Kyiv, by Ukrainian missile fire on the second day of the Chechens' deployment. It is unclear how many died -- but the number is likely to run into the hundreds, the report said.
Putin said to be angry at stalled efforts to conquer Ukraine
Russian President Putin is said to be growing increasingly angry by his stalled efforts to conquer Ukraine, and has not issued a public address in days, Daily Mail reported. His fire and manpower vastly outnumber that of Ukraine, and it is widely believed that Russia will eventually conquer its neighbour. Ukraine landed a significant blow on Russia Saturday after it allegedly killed a large group of bloodthirsty Chechen special forces.
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