Russian President Vladimir Putin has on Sunday ordered the Defence Ministry to put Russia’s strategic deterrence forces on high combat alert.
The Russian President’s orders came during his meeting with Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov.
Putin stressed that this step comes in response to Western officials, who “not only took aggressive economic steps, but their NATO officials made aggressive statements against Russia.”
The Russian forces are continuing for the fourth day their special operation to protect Donetsk and Lugansk, and to disarm Ukrainian ultranationalist forces amid an unprecedented escalation of Western sanctions against Russia, with a focus on its financial sector.
