Chechnya’s Ramzan Kadyrov says he is sending his teenage sons to Ukraine frontline

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, says his teenage sons must “prove themselves in battle”.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, says he is sending three of his teenage sons — aged 14, 15 and 16 — to the Ukraine frontline.

“It’s time to prove themselves in a real fight, I can only welcome this desire,” Kadyrov wrote on Telegram, posting a video of the young boys firing missiles in a shooting range.

“Soon they will go to the front line and will be on the most difficult sections of the contact line.”

There are fears that as Russian losses grow, Putin could turn to nuclear weapons to defend territory, an option previously endorsed by Kadyrov.

“In my personal opinion, more drastic measures should be taken, up to the declaration of martial law in the border areas and use of low-yield nuclear weapons,” Kadyrov said on his Telegram channel after Moscow’s troops were forced out of Lyman.

The Kremlin dismissed that call on Monday.

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, an ally of President Vladimir Putin, said Monday he was sending three of his teenage sons — aged 14, 15 and 16 — to the Ukraine front.

“This is a very emotional moment,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a daily briefing with journalists, referring to statements by the ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“In our country, the use of nuclear weapons happens only on the basis of what is stated in the relevant doctrine”, Peskov said.

threatened to attack Poland unless it agrees to withdraw its support of Ukraine.

Mr Kadyrov, who calls himself a “foot soldier” of Vladimir Putin, has been accused of extrajudicial killings and has previously threatened to kill his opponents.

“Ukraine is a done deal. What I’m interested in is Poland,” said Mr Kadyrov in a video posted on his social media this week.

There are fears that as Russian losses grow, Putin could turn to nuclear weapons to defend territory, an option previously endorsed by Kadyrov.

“After Ukraine, if we are given the command, in six seconds we will show what we are capable of. You should better take back your weapons and your mercenaries. And beg official forgiveness for what you did to our ambassador. We won‘t just ignore it, bear that in mind.”

In the first days of the invasion, the former separatist rebel gave a speech urging Volodymyr Zelensky to ask the Russian tyrant for forgiveness.

Kadyrov fought against the Russians in the First Chechen War, only to change sides and join Moscow in the second conflict in 1999.