REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina
Russia’s war hawks have spent the better part of the past year claiming they’re not losing in Ukraine–they’re just being held back. But now, they claim, the gloves are about to come off.
It’s no longer enough to bomb women and children as they sleep. It’s time to “shoot down [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky’s plane” and “launch missiles at [his] residence in Kyiv,” two Kremlin allies said Wednesday.
A chorus of pro-Kremlin voices are demanding “merciless” revenge after Moscow accused Ukraine of trying to assassinate President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin overnight. Rather than questioning the official version of events—like how on earth TWO Ukrainian drones could surpass all of Russia’s air defenses to strike in the heart of the capital—Russian officials and propagandists alike wasted no time in foaming at the mouth as they demanded that the “real war” now begin.