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Scottish Sun
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Scottish Sun
Horror warning as Putin plans to launch apocalyptic wave of TWO THOUSAND killer drones at Ukraine in overwhelming blitz
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TWISTED Vladimir Putin is planning to launch an apocalyptic wave of 2,000 drones at Ukraine all at once, warns a top European general. Footage shows Russia mass producing the deadly weapons with Moscow reportedly looking to overwhelm Ukrainian air defences with the incoming blitz. 8 Russia is reportedly mass producing thousands of deadly drones ahead of a looming blitz on Ukraine Credit: X 8 Vladimir Putin's 'death drone factory' is production Shahed weapons at an alarming rate Credit: X 8 The deadly Shahed drones have caused years of pain for Ukraine during the conflict with Putin constantly deploying them in civilian areas such as the Kirovohrad region Credit: X/ZelenskyyUa German Major General Christian Freuding says his team has uncovered worrying intelligence which points towards Putin's next attack plan. The tyrant has ramped up his nightly offensives in recent weeks with constant bombardments on Ukrainian civilians. The attacks come amid pressure from the US and Europe for Russia to agree to a ceasefire to finally end the conflict. US President Donald Trump even imposed a 50-day peace deadline on Putin this month. But the constant warnings have done little to stop Putin. Freuding now believes that Russia is significantly expanding its weapons production capacity to help enable a mass drone deployment in the coming months. He claims that Moscow plans to launch 2,000 Shahed drones simultaneously. The Iranian made unmanned aircraft has been a key weapon in Moscow's arsenal during the three years of conflict. Warped Russian state TV has shown off mad Vlad's "drone death factory" packed out with the kamikaze killers. The channel boasted about the "scale of this production" at the plant as they showed off "huge, bright workshops in which you can get lost" in. Putin blitzes Ukrainian shopping centre with half-ton glide bomb killing two They claim that "hundreds of machines, thousands of workers" are in the factory each day. These include teenagers who have been recruited to support Putin's war after being "educated" - or indoctrinated - at a special drone university. Along with his catastrophic warning, Freuding also stressed that Ukraine needs to develop "smart countermeasures" to stop any looming attacks. He believes Kyiv needs to deploy low-cost defensive drones to repel large-scale blitzes. This way they can produce thousands of unmanned weapons instead of relying on a high-cost system such as the Patriot. The missile defence system costs around $5million and despite being highly accurate it is likely to be overwhelmed by the surging waves of drones. Freuding added that Ukraine could also launch strikes deep inside Russian territory which target military aircraft, airfields and defence factories to put Moscow on the back foot. Russia's aerial threats have been a key fear for Ukraine and their allies in recent weeks. 8 Russian state media claims that 'hundreds of machines, thousands of workers' are in the factory each day Credit: X 8 Putin has been using his Ram 1500 trucks to transport the drones across the country Credit: X 8 Firefighters try to extinguish a fire at a gas station in the Nemyshlyan district targeted and hit by the Russian shahed drones in Kharkiv Credit: Getty At the start of July, experts warned Russia could soon hammer Ukraine with 1,000 drones and missiles every day. Russia's defence industry is expanding their projects rapidly to increase their supply lines - including at the "death drone factory". Moscow's firepower capacity has constantly increased this year with his forces regularly breaking the record for the largest daily volley of weapons. On June 1, a 479-strong wave of drones and missiles became Russia's largest unmanned aerial assault of the war. June 9 saw that broken with 499, then again on June 29 with 537. At the start of the month, Putin terrorised Kyiv with a firestorm of 550 drones and missiles - marking his largest attack yet. Ukraine has valiantly hit back across the past week with them launching five straight days of drone attacks on Moscow. Trump's 50-day peace deadline for Vlad THE Kremlin mocked Donald Trump's 50-day peace deadline and may now demand even more Ukrainian territory instead of trying to sign peace. Vladimir Putin will instead keep terrorising Ukrainian civilians during the seven-week period, sources said. The furious US President said he is 'very unhappy' with Russia as he warned of 100 per cent secondary tariffs on Moscow should they continue to blitz Ukraine. Trump said he wants the war to end, but doubled down on his frustration with Putin, saying he's "disappointed" in the Russian leader. But a snarling Putin has always declined and instead ramped up his ground and aerial offensives across Ukraine. He also vowed to send US weapons - compromising of "everything" in their arsenal - to Nato so they can distribute them to Kyiv. Read more here. 8 The wreckage of Shahed drone shot down in Ukraine Credit: X
Scottish Sun
05-07-2025
- Politics
- Scottish Sun
Desperate Putin brainwashing TODDLERS with cartoons starring baby Trump to indoctrinate kids ‘as early as possible'
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TWISTED Putin's brainwashing programme has plunged to new depths with a dystopian propaganda cartoon aimed at toddlers. The animated kids' show uses toddler versions of world leaders to plant pro-Putin and anti-Western sentiments before kids can even walk or talk. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 16 Sandpit features animated versions of Putin, Trump, Macron, Musk, Erdogan and Kim (top left to bottom right) Credit: Telegram 16 A gentle, wide-eyed Putin with a bear and a ship symbolising the Black Sea Fleet Credit: Telegram 16 Putin's propaganda machine targets children to boost support for his faltering war Credit: Alamy Putin's chief propagandist, Vladimir Solovyov, spearheaded the new show called Sandpit. The producers say its aim is to "instil patriotism from an early age" and teach Russian infants to "discuss geopolitics". A 30-second trailer posted on Solovyov's Telegram account shows toddler versions of Putin, Trump, Macron, Musk, Erdogan and Kim Jong-un chatting on a video call. At one point, Kim tells Macron he shouldn't be allowed to hang out with the others because 'you're always with your grandma' - a jibe at the French president's wife, Brigitte, who is 24 years his senior. When Trump asks why their call is taking place on a Russian video app, Putin fires back with a jab at Western technology: 'Because your Skype cut out, that's why.' Speaking to The Sun, Dr Alasdair McCallum, a Russian propaganda expert at Australia's Monash University, says: "The Sandpit cartoon is taking things to new extremes. "You have these quite bizarre AI-generated cartoons aimed at toddlers. "The aim is to indoctrinate from as early as possible - before they can even walk.' Dr McCallum thinks the message in the trailer couldn't be more obvious. He explains: 'The idea is that Russia is strong and the West is weak, so Trump, Macron and Musk are depicted as goofy and incapable of making strong decisions, whereas the little toddler version of Putin is very strong and composed.' Inside Putin's chilling 10-year plot to build army of West-hating 'child zombies' to prepare for war with Nato Putin, whose face appears kind and calm, is shown wearing a crisp white judo uniform. Next to the Russian president sit a teddy bear, a symbol of national identity, and a black toy ship, representing the Russian Navy's Black Sea Fleet. Meanwhile Kim, who is currently sending troops and weapons to back Putin's war in Ukraine, comes across as missile-mad, gripping a toy rocket tightly with both hands. Towering missiles also loom in the background of the dictator's room - which, with its lack of windows, resembles a bunker. And to drive the point home further, Kim's email address - BigBadaBoom@ - is a blatant nod to explosions, paired with the mock domain of North Korea's capital. Erdogan, whose email address is LuxuryTurkey@ is also portrayed in a wildly exaggerated style. Wearing the traditional fez, the Turkish president appears against an ornate, Ottoman-inspired backdrop. While presidents like Erdogan and Macron show cracks of anxiety, Trump and Musk grin smugly. The businessman-turned-president sits in a gaudy room, while the Tesla CEO appears fixated on his toy car. The cartoons even have their own avatars: Putin is a bear with a red star, Kim is a mushroom cloud and Trump is the pope blessing worshippers. Many of the references will sail right over kids' heads, Dr McCallum admits, but he says they serve the additional aim of shocking the rest of the world. He explains: 'A lot of Russian propaganda has a kind of shock element to it. "This is why you often see extreme messages about the amount of nukes they could drop on Britain.' He believes the timing of the show's launch is far from a coincidence. UK intelligence revealed in early June that Russia has suffered huge war losses, with about one million of its own soldiers either killed or wounded in the war in Ukraine since February 2022. 16 Sandpit aims to 'instil patriotism from an early age', according to its producers Credit: Telegram 16 A missile-mad Kim Jong-un is shown holding a toy rocket Credit: Telegram 16 A distressed Macron is teased over his older wife Brigitte, who is called his 'grandma' Credit: Telegram 16 Putin has ramped up propaganda aimed at children Credit: AP "They need to replenish that manpower, they have to try to indoctrinate them early,' says Dr McCallum. But he finds it hard to imagine any of Solovyov's eight privileged, Western-educated kids - born to three different women - dying on the front line in Donetsk. "It's always the lower echelons of society that get fed into this propaganda mill and then go to fight and die,' he adds. Sandpit comes as the Kremlin ramps up efforts to target children - both Russian and Ukrainian - with state propaganda. At Russia's Victory Day parades, prams are turned into cardboard tanks and babies are dressed in tiny army uniforms. Youth groups like Yunarmiya, along with school visits featuring war veterans, actively expose kids - even as young as preschool age - to the world of weaponry and military culture. While boys are targeted with militaristic messaging, girls are fed pro-natalist narratives, pushing them toward motherhood and care-giving roles, says Dr McCallum. Teenage girls are reportedly paid as much as £1,000 to have babies in more than 10 regions across Russia, including Oryol and Yaroslavl in the west, and Kemerovo in Siberia. A TV show previously called 'Pregnant at 16' - intended to discourage teenage pregnancies - was rebranded as 'Mama at 16' in January. Each episode now opens with the more optimistic phrase "I'm expecting a child" instead of the former "I'm pregnant". The channel that airs 'Mama at 16' also broadcasts similarly themed shows like 'Supermum', 'Maternity Ward Days', 'Call Me Mum' and 'Mama at 45'. Its website reads: 'Yu is a reality show network about the most important things for a young woman: family, children, mother-in-laws, mums, friends and, of course, love.' 16 Russian President Vladimir Putin and leading TV propagandist Vladimir Solovyov Credit: East2West 16 Who is Vladimir Solovyov? VLADIMIR Solovyov is a leading TV presenter and pro-Putin propagandist. Born in 1963 to a Jewish family in Moscow, he has hosted the prime-time show Evening with Vladimir Solovyov on state channel Russia-1 since 2012. Known for his staunch support of Putin's policies, Solovyov has been a vocal advocate for Russia's war in Ukraine. On the eve of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Solovyov was sanctioned by the EU and banned from entering its member states. Solovyov at the time said: "Today is the day that a righteous operation was launched for the de-Nazification in Ukraine." In August 2022, following proposals by some EU countries to ban tourist visas for Russians, Solovyov even suggested missile strikes on Berlin, Paris, London and Brussels. At school, children face mandatory weekly lessons called 'Conversations about Important Things', where patriotism is drilled in and dying for the Motherland is glorified. The course was introduced in September 2022 - eight months after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In September 2023, new history textbooks were distributed across Russian schools that glorify Russia, omit criticism of Stalin and portray the West as aggressors. Children are taught that Ukraine is a 'Nazi state' and that Russia's invasion is justified - no different to Putin's claim that it's 'a question of life and death, the question of our historic future as a people'. Dr McCallum explains: 'A central element of Russian propaganda is that Russia and ethnic Russians were the sole victors over Nazism and that Ukraine is an artificial Nazi state. "But this doesn't gel with the reality of a Jewish president [Zelensky] and support from European countries." 16 Russian children enrolled in the Youth Army are seen trying on gas masks Credit: Reuters 16 The Kremlin is trying to boost support for its military among children Credit: Reuters 16 Solovyov is a leading figure on Russia's state-run TV, where he regularly calls for the destruction of the West Credit: East2West More Russians are rejecting Putin's propaganda Contrary to popular belief, the majority of Russians do not rely solely on state-controlled TV. Dependence on state TV dropped sharply from around 90 percent to just over 60 percent from 2013 to 2021, according to the Atlantic Council. Meanwhile, over 85 percent of Russians are said to have internet access. Despite increased Kremlin censorship, independent platforms like YouTube and Telegram remain accessible in Russia. Many people also use virtual private networks (VPNs) to bypass restrictions. The majority of Russians still back the war in Ukraine, according to the latest 2025 surveys from Levada Center, Statista, and VCIOM. But the data reveals a growing appetite for peace talks. Younger generations, in particular, show lower support for the conflict compared to their elders. However, experts warn that public surveys on Russian support for the war should be taken with a pinch of salt, as censorship and fear of repercussions can dictate people's responses. Over 500 Russian teenagers have been arrested at anti-war rallies since 2022, according to human rights group OVD-Info. One of them, Arseny Turbin, was just 15 when he was arrested and accused of joining the Freedom of Russia Legion - a group made up of Russian citizens fighting alongside Ukraine. He was also charged with distributing leaflets critical of Vladimir Putin and the war. Arseny was sentenced to five years in a youth detention centre in November last year - where he remains to this day. 16 A classroom of Russian children in Moscow 16 A Russian boy examines an AK-74 Kalashnikov assault rifle at a military exhibition 16 A Russian military officer accepts flowers from a girl during Victory Day parade Credit: AFP 16 The reality show 'Mama at 16' has been criticised as encouraging girls to become teen mums
