Vladimir Putin's allies have issued a chilling warning of a potential 20-year war, with nuclear weapons described as a 'good' scenario. The threats were made at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, known as the 'Russian Davos', which was hit by Ukrainian drone strikes on the city's oil port and naval base.
Konstantin Malofeev, a pro-Kremlin oligarch and media owner, told the forum: 'The use of nuclear weapons, we don't consider a worst-case scenario. We consider it a good one.' Professor Andrey Bezrukov, a former Russian spy, stressed that Russia must recognise it will be at war for the next few years, possibly decades, and called for a response to Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet service, which he claimed allows Ukraine to strike deep into Russian regions.
Bezrukov also accused the West of targeting Russia with 'biowarfare' laboratories creating viruses that could destroy humanity. Viktor Khrenin, defence minister of Belarus, warned of an 'extremely high' probability of the Ukraine war escalating into a global conflict, accusing NATO of massing troops near Russian and Belarusian borders.
Malofeev outlined a 'worst-case scenario' where Russia could face defeat by 2036 and be 'colonised' by 2050. In a 'good-case scenario', he envisioned the annexation of Ukrainian cities like Kyiv, Odesa, and Kharkiv, the disintegration of the European Union, and Russia leading global security by 2050.
Meanwhile, Ukraine struck a major ammunition warehouse in occupied Donetsk region, and in St Petersburg, a major oil port terminal was damaged and a naval corvette was hit. Ukraine also unveiled its new FP-7 air defence missiles designed to intercept Russian ballistic missiles, with first interceptions possible this year.
