Kremlin reveals tyrant Putin's Ukraine 'buffer zone' plan - as NATO is forced to scramble planes for second night after Trump branded dictator 'absolutely crazy' for Kyiv killing spree
Putin mouthpiece Dmitry Medvedev has shared a map which suggests that the Kremlin tyrant wants to turn the whole of Ukraine - apart from a tiny sliver on Poland 's border - into a 'buffer zone'.
Medvedev - an ex-president of Russia and now a top security and political official - wrote on X: 'If military aid to the [ Kyiv ] regime continues, the buffer zone could look like this.'
He offered no further explanation, but reasoned in a Telegram post earlier this month that such a large zone was necessary to protect Belgorod from long-range Western weapons supplied to Ukraine, such as the British Storm Shadow with a range of more than 150 miles.
The post came as Moscow pummeled Ukraine with devastating strikes on Sunday, forcing NATO to scramble warplanes from Poland as a defensive measure for the second night in a row.
US President Donald Trump last night accused the Kremlin dictator of going 'absolutely CRAZY… needlessly killing a lot of people', and threatened tougher sanctions in response to the killing.
'Missiles and drones are being shot into Cities in Ukraine, for no reason whatsoever,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
'I've always said that he wants ALL of Ukraine, not just a piece of it, and maybe that's proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia,' he added - a statement which reflected the chilling vision shared by Medvedev.
As well as his very blunt words for Putin, Trump also took aim at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and what he claimed was his part in prolonging the three-year war, which began with Russia's illegal invasion.
'Likewise, President Zelenskyy is doing his Country no favors by talking the way he does,' he said, reigniting tensions between the two leaders.
'Everything out of his mouth causes problems, I don't like it, and it better stop.'
President Donald Trump has warned Putin has gone 'absolutely crazy' following his latest deadly attack on Ukraine
Zelensky had earlier called on Trump to condemn the attack, writing on Telegram: 'The silence of America, the silence of others in the world only encourages Putin.
'Every such terrorist Russian strike is reason enough for new sanctions against Russia.'
In Odesa, a man was killed after covering his girlfriend with his body. After receiving 70 per cent burns on his body he managed to let her and his dog out to be rescued, according to reports.
In Kharkiv region, at least six settlements were under fire with two women, aged 84 and 58 killed.
A man aged 60 and women aged 76 and 68 were injured.
Russian troops shelled the village of Kindrativka in the Sumy region with artillery, killing a man, and wounding another.
In Khotyn, a 48-year-old resident died from artillery shelling.
Another civilian - a 52-year-old man - was injured.
Russia staged a massive attack on a military airfield in Starokostiantyniv, Khmelnytskyi region.
'It burned like hell on earth…' said a witness.
In Zaporizhzhia region, a woman, 60, and man, 52 were wounded in Russian strikes on a private home.
Ukraine continued to fight back - again causing mayhem at Russian airports, especially Moscow, as they were forced into shutdowns due to swarming kamikaze drones.
Moscow hubs Vnukovo, Domodedovo, and Zhukovsky all suffered closures - as did Kaluga, Nizhny Novgorod, Yaroslavl and Cherepovets airports.
A major chemical plant - key to making Russian explosives - was hit at Kineshma in Ivanovo region, with smoke seen pouring from the facility.
Tula region, with multiple defence enterprises, was also under fire - a regular target in recent days.
Power outages followed the drone strikes.
Russia's main drone-making centre Yelabuga in Tatarstan was also hit by Ukrainian drones in overnight attacks, according to reports.
And a train exploded in Russia's Belgorod region after hitting a mine.
Leading Putin TV propagandist Vladimir Solovyov admitted that Ukrainian fighters are holding up Russia - claiming if the war was against Britain and other Western countries, Moscow would have won by now.
'The [Ukrainian] enemy is strong and cunning,' he told viewers. 'And we win not by numbers, but by skill, by preparation.
'If they were not like us... but like the Germans, French and British, we'd have [finished] them…
'There'd be nothing left of them. Just nothing. The [Westerners] don't understand what war is.'
The Institute for the Study of War assessed that Putin's relentless attacks are aimed at hitting morale in Ukraine but also undermining Western confidence in Kyiv's ability to resist the Russians.
'Russian President Vladimir Putin is leveraging long-range strikes against Ukrainian cities, aggressive rhetorical campaigns, and excessive pessimism in the West about the battlefield situation in Ukraine in a multi-pronged effort to degrade Ukrainian morale and convince the West that a Russian victory in Ukraine is inevitable and that supporting Ukraine is futile,' said the ISW.
Yet 'the battlefield situation has shifted dramatically since early 2022, and three years of manpower and material losses have significantly degraded the Russian military's ability to conquer Ukraine.
'Russian advances have significantly slowed as Russian forces continue to suffer personnel losses and increasingly rely on poorly trained and equipped infantry to make gains.
'Putin remains deeply committed to distracting from the realities of the battlefield situation, however, as bringing about the cessation of Western military assistance to Ukraine is Russia's only real hope of winning this war.'
Russia said it had shot down 148 Ukrainian drones.
Zelensky vowed new sanctions including 'against representatives of Russian mafia groups who significantly helped the formation of the Putin regime and are still associated with it'.
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