Russia’s president has been accused of attacking Ukraine to distract from domestic issues.
As the European Union and the United States continue to impose sanctions on Russia, the country’s president Vladimir Putin has been accused of launching attacks on Ukraine in order to distract from domestic issues. According to The Guardian, Russia is “desperate for an external enemy” because of its economic crisis and social unrest. There have been multiple clashes between Russian-backed rebels and Ukrainian forces in recent months, with Russia accused of sending troops into Ukrainian territory.
On October 26th, Putin visited a military training ground in southern Russia to review military exercises involving thousands of troops. He also used the opportunity to warn NATO against expanding eastwards. NATO is expected to invite Montenegro as its 29th member at a summit in Brussels next week. This will make it harder for Putin to claim that NATO is an enemy or threat.
