Vladimir Putin ready to ‘destroy West’ as Russia launches 3,700km/h supersonic missiles

Vladimir Putin says he is ready “to destroy the West” with nukes after launching supersonic missiles. Watch video.

Vladimir Putin insists he is ready to “destroy the West” with nuclear weapons as Russia launched new supersonic missiles into the Sea of Japan, his top security aide said.

Nikolai Patrushev, 71, — who is seen by some as the brains behind the ill-conceived war in Ukraine — insisted the Russian president will attack the West if attempts are made to defeat and dismember Russia.

Russia’s defence ministry said on Tuesday two P-270 Moskit missiles were blasted at mock enemy targets.

“In the waters of the Sea of Japan, missile ships of the Pacific Fleet fired Moskit cruise missiles at a mock enemy sea target,” a statement posted on Telegram said.

“The target, located at a distance of about 100 kilometres, was successfully hit by a direct hit from two Moskit cruise missiles.”

Vladimir Putin says he is ready to destroy the West after launching supersonic missiles.

The P-270 Moskit missile is a medium-range supersonic cruise missile of Soviet origin, capable of destroying a ship within a range of up to 120 km.

It can hit speeds of 3700 km/h and has conventional and nuclear warhead capacity.

Japan‘s foreign minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said Tokyo will stay vigilant against Moscow’s military operations, while adding that no damage had been reported after the missile launches.

“As Russia‘s invasion of Ukraine continues, Russian forces are also becoming more active in the Far East, including Japan’s vicinities,” Mr Hayashi said.

PUTIN USES SURVEILLANCE TO SUPPRESS PROTEST

The Russian president is using US technology to suppress protests in a bid to quash any opposition to the war in Ukraine.

In 2017, Russia launched one of the world’s largest facial recognition networks which had 160,000 cameras with more than 3000 of them connected to a facial recognition system.

According to a Reuters investigation, they reviewed more than 2000 court case records which found the cameras played a massive role in the arrests of hundreds of anti-government protesters and those opposing the Ukraine war.

The facial recognition system, powered by Russian algorithms, uses chips from US firms Nvidia Corp or Intel Corp.

Daria Korolenko, a lawyer with OVD-Info, an independent human rights group that monitors repression in Russia said:

“It’s a new practice, which is being used to chilling effect, especially in Moscow where protests have been the largest and where people know that they are being watched by facial recognition cameras.”

Vladimir Putin is understood to be sleeping at Russian Parliament out of fear for his life. Picture: AFP

US BACKS PLAN TO PROSECUTE PUTIN

The US has thrown its support behind calls for a special tribunal to prosecute Russia for the “crime of aggression” against Ukraine, an idea promoted by the European Union.

The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin over war crimes and considers aggression a crime but it has no jurisdiction over Russia, which is not party to The Hague tribunal.

A State Department spokesperson said Tuesday that the United States supported a special tribunal on the crime of aggression over Russia’s February 2022 invasion of its neighbour.

“We envision such a court having significant international support – particularly from our partners in Europe – and ideally located in another country in Europe.”

Beth Van Schaack, the US ambassador-at-large for global criminal justice, said that the US wanted the court to have international personnel and resources.

“We believe an internationalised court that is rooted in Ukraine’s judicial system, but that also includes international elements, will provide the clearest path to establishing a new tribunal and maximising our chances of achieving meaningful accountability,” she said in a speech at the Catholic University of America on Monday

“We are committed to working with Ukraine, and peace-loving countries around the world, to stand up, staff and resource such a tribunal in a way that will achieve comprehensive accountability for the international crimes being committed in Ukraine.”

It was the first time that the US – which has fraught relations with the International Criminal Court – has explicitly supported a special tribunal on Ukraine.

The European Union in November floated the idea of a tribunal, which was backed in January by a vote of the European Parliament.

PARANOID PUTIN’S BIZARRE NEW MOVE

A paranoid Vladimir Putin has resorted to “sleeping in his Kremlin office” out of fear for his life.

With concerns mounting about a possible assassination, the Russian leader has been staying at the Parliamentary building for security reasons instead of heading home to his family at night, according to reports.

Mr Putin revealed in a TV interview: “I have an apartment here (at the Kremlin), where I spend a lot of time lately. I work here and spend a lot of nights often”.

It comes as a trained terrorism expert weighed in on whether he is using body doubles.

“You can tell by just looking at the photograph of Putin that something is not quite right,” SAS-trained Graham Yuill told the Daily Record.

“Each person’s face has unique characteristics that can determine if he is real or fake.

“However, the photographs last week of Putin in Ukraine do not match all his facial characteristics.”

He explained that while the hair, ears and eyes of the man who looked like Mr Putin were a “perfect” match, the nose, chin and space between the nose and lips were “wrong”.

“The people protecting him did not look like professional guards either,” Mr Yuill said.

“There was also not the normal high levels of security that you would normally see for such a visit such as an armoured vehicle.

The comments come after a viral video surfaced last week accusing the Russian leader of using body doubles.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov committed to Russian nukes in Belarus. Picture: AFP

PUTIN WON’T BACK DOWN ON BELARUS NUKES

The Kremlin on Monday said Western criticism would not change plans announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in neighbouring Belarus.

The West condemned Putin’s weekend announcement on placing the weapons in EU and NATO-bordering Belarus, triggering calls for new sanctions on Moscow.

Ukraine said it was seeking an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council over the move.

“Such a reaction of course cannot influence Russian plans,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Speaking during a televised interview, Mr Putin said Moscow would station the tactical nuclear weapons “without violating our international agreements on nuclear non-proliferation”.

He said this was “nothing unusual”.

“The United States has been doing this for decades. They have long placed their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allies,” Mr Putin said.

The Russian leader said he spoke to his Belarusian ally Alexander Lukashenko and that they had “agreed to do the same”.

Mr Putin’s announcement comes as Russian shelling of eastern Ukraine continues over a year into his grinding offensive in Ukraine.

RUSSIAN MISSILES DESTROY ORPHANAGE

In the town of Sloviansk on Monday at least two people were killed and around 30 were wounded, authorities said.

“As of 13:00, there are two dead and 29 wounded in Sloviansk,” Donetsk region governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Facebook, adding that “administrative and office buildings, five high-rise buildings and seven private houses were damaged” in the attack.

“(Russian forces) struck the city centre with two S-300 missiles,” he added.

Kyrylenko also said that another town in Donetsk region, Druzhkivka, was targeted by an attack.

“Two S-300 missiles hit the Druzhkivka orphanage and almost completely destroyed it,” he said, adding that according to initial information there were no casualties.

Details for Sloviansk: two have already died, and another 29 are injured. Among them is one child. And a russian missile attack on nearby Druzhkivka. Two russian S300 shells hit the Druzhkivka orphanage and almost completely destroyed it. pic.twitter.com/RKr5LCJrwy

— Kate McKenna (@KateMcKenna28) March 27, 2023

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media, “The enemy must know: Ukraine will not forgive the torturing of our people, will not forgive these deaths and wounds,” he added.

In the frontline town of Avdiivka in the eastern Donetsk region municipal workers are being withdrawn, as Russian forces claim incremental gains nearby.

“Avdiivka looks more and more like a scene from post-apocalyptic movies,” the head of the town’s administration Vitalii Barabash said on social media.

“Therefore, a difficult decision was made to evacuate … municipal workers, who at least somehow tried to maintain the cleanliness and vitality of the city.”

Russian forces have been working to capture the entire eastern Donetsk region for several months, with the focus of fighting centring on Bakhmut, north of Avdiivka.

“I strongly recommend leaving Avdiivka, because Russian rockets and projectiles do not spare anyone or anything – no matter what views you hold,” Barabash added in the statement.

Before the Russian invasion, the town had a population of 30,000 but after more than a year of fighting, only 2,300 people are left.

A security person standing in front of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Enerhodar amid the ongoing Russian military action in Ukraine. Picture: AFP

ZELENSKYY MEETS WITH UN ATOMIC ENERGY WATCHDOG

Mr Zelenskyy on Monday, local time, met with UN atomic energy chief Rafael Mariano Grossi in an urgent attempt to address the dangerous situation at the Ukraine Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, which has been damaged during the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and which is currently running on emergency diesel generators.

The plant is now also held by Russian forces, and Mr Grossi plans to visit this week.

“I met Zelensky today in Zaporizhzhia City and had a rich exchange on the protection of the Zaporizhzhia NPP (nuclear power plant) and its staff,” Mr Grossi wrote on Twitter.

“I reiterated the full support of the IAEA to Ukraine’s nuclear facilities,” he said, referring to the International Atomic Energy Agency which he heads.

27.03. Pr. Zelensky today: "Zaporizhzhia region. Frontline positions. I am honored to be here today, next to our military. I am thankful to each of our warriors for defending Ukraine, our sovereignty, our cities, and our children. We will definitely win. 🇺🇦" pic.twitter.com/M5SmUDmDyZ

— Dénes Törteli 🇪🇺🇭🇺🇺🇦 (@DenesTorteli) March 27, 2023

Earlier on Monday Mr Zelenskyy said he visited Ukrainian military positions in the Zaporizhzhia region.

“I am honoured to be here today, next to our military,” Mr Zelenskyy said on social media, posting a video of himself and Ukrainian servicemen.

“We will definitely win.”

During the trip, the Ukrainian president visited a local command post and decorated policemen and servicemen, the presidency said in a statement.