Putin blames West for Ukraine war and says Russia is fighting 'for their motherland'

Ukrainian troops have mocked bonkers Russian President Vladimir Putin by playing cards that have his face on.The brave soldiers have printed pictures of him alongside other “war criminals” onto the deck, in a similar move to US fighters against Saddam Hussein in Iraq.There are two editions of the cards, including one featuring Putin and the Russian government and another with photos of their top military officers.Ukrainian armed forces chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi worked alongside volunteers from the international intelligence community InformNapalm to produce the cards.He declared: “By the joint efforts of the military and volunteers, by the efforts of all people of goodwill…racism will inevitably be beaten.”Ukrainian soldiers who use the cards to play games as they relax will be able to identify people of interest – such as a Russian soldier accused of killing an innocent 62-year-old bloke, who was the first soldier to go to court for war crimes this week.Tank commander Vadim Shishimarin, 21, is accused of using an assault rifle to shoot the unarmed civilian as he rode his bicycle along the street.Stay in the loop with all the latest Daily Star news by signing up to one of our free newsletters here.Tragically, it isn’t the only alleged war crime – a Ukrainian government statement believes Russian military personnel have carried out over 10,000 possible war crimes.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine will host the next Eurovision Song Contest after the country's folk-rap group Kalush Orchestra won the 2022 trophy. Kalush Orchestra were destined for victory amid Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion, which sparked Eurovision organisers to ban Russia from competing this year. Ukraine, which joined the contest in 2003, won by a landslide 631 points as votes from the public came in their droves to show their support for the country.The win is the third time Ukraine have taken home the victory – after previously being crowned Eurovision champions in 2004 and 2016.

Russia has made new threats to use its Satan-2 hypersonic nuclear missile to strike Britain in just 200 seconds.

Eurovision Song Contest final has been revealed, with British entry Sam Ryder hopeful of a strong finish.Sam will be performing the song Space Man to a live audience of millions across the world as he bids to bring home the Eurovision crown for the first time since Katrina and the Waves saw success in 1997.Despite some branding the show a fix, the hot favourites are Ukrainian rap group Kalush Orchestra, which is no surprise as the war in their home country dominates the headlines around the world.The singing celebration of different cultures will take on a heightened meaning this year, as Vladimir Putin's forces do their best to destroy Ukrainian independence and way of life.Eurovision enthusiasts are in for a long night full of celebrations and the hopeful tunes of Europe's singing sensations, though won't be joined by Ireland's Brooke Scullion after she failed to qualify for the final.Sam Ryder will be on towards the end of the show, performing as act number 22 out of 25, rounding off an impressive evening of entertainment.Songs have a maximum of three minutes according to the Eurovision rules, but there will be plenty of videos in place for each act as the stages are prepared, as well as the usual banter between the hosts.Coverage can be seen and heard on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and on BBC Radio 2 and BBC Sounds.READ MORE: When is Eurovision? Date of final, who is hosting and who is UK entry?Of the contest, Sam said: "There is a shift in attitude towards Eurovision happening in the UK hopefully. People are getting positive, people are getting behind it, people are getting excited."If I have any hope in anything, I think it doesn’t involve any position on a scoreboard.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is severely ill and suffering from "Parkinson's disease and schizoaffective disorder", according to inside sources. This comes after one of Russia's top oligarchs claimed he was “very ill with blood cancer”, with rumours circulating that he is due to undergo surgery.

EXCLUSIVE: Two-time BAFTA nominee Maxine Peake (The Village) is set to star as renowned Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya in the timely Cannes market package Mother Russia.

Vladimir Putin is 'firing and arresting' his top brass over the botched invasion of Ukraine, according to reports.

Russia-Ukraine war showing the moment one of Vladimir Putin's tanks is blown to pieces by Ukrainian forces.

Russian leader Vladimir Putin is suffering severe health problem as rumours over a potential successor now have eyes on a young mystery man he was close with at the Victory Day parade.He has appeared unsteady and weak in recent pubic appearances, and sparked further speculation when he missed an ice hockey match that has been a regular date in his diary for a decade.But If Putin were to step down – or be ousted – the big question is who would replace him?In the short term Mikhail Mishustin, the Prime Minister, would automatically assume power if the leader died or became incapacitated.But Kremlin watchers are tipping Dmitry Kovalev as a possible future leader. Kovalev, a member of the Presidential Administration, appears to be one of the few people that Putin trusts.Russian news source Baza (Base) posted on Telegram that Kovalev, 36, seemed to be very friendly with Putin at Monday’s Victory Parade in Moscow."Baza found out the identity of a young man who talked about something with Vladimir Putin after the end of the Victory Parade,” the post read.“During the live broadcast, the camera caught their conversation.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is reportedly outraged about his secret gymnast lover falling pregnant again.

Vladimir Putin has missed an annual ice hockey match that has been a regular fixture in his calendar since 2012, giving rise to more speculation about his health.The Russian leader, 69, has made a habit of showing off his skills on the ice at an annual match during Russia's Night Hockey League National Festival in May.But this year while Putin was 'expected' to take part, he instead sent a video message wishing competitors 'good luck in their ice battles' - despite the President being in the Black Sea report of Sochi where the match took place on Tuesday. It is only the second time that the President has missed the game since 2012, with the first instance being due to acknowledged health problems.

Vladimir Putin is under threat from “hardmen” within the Kremlin after his disastrous Ukraine campaign, and the Russian leader could be planning to invade other countries just to “distract” his generals, a top military expert has said. Putin has weakened his own position within Russia, says former NATO boss Sir James Everard, and he has weakened Russia’s position in the world.

Eurovision 2022 for months, but winning might cause the country some problems. The nation has found overwhelming international support this year since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine and caused untold devastation to the country.

Russian multi-millionaire Mikhail Khodorkovsky posted shocking photos earlier this week that showed a young girl being trained to shoot “fascists” with a rifle.The pictures, apparently taken in the south Russian city of Kislovodsk, were originally sourced from a Telegram account belonging to the Mayor of Kislovodsk Yevgeny Moiseev.The girl was being encouraged to shoot at a crude effigy wearing jeans, combat jacket and a mocked-up Nazi armband.Moiseev wrote: “In Kislovodsk, they carried out an operation to shoot the last fascist - on the gates of one of the private households they hung an effigy of the fascist invader and occupier, who was shot with an air rifle." Long before he launched his invasion of Ukraine, Russia ’s leader Vladimir Putin had described Ukrainians as “fascists”. He has repeatedly claimed that “anti-Semitic forces” run Ukraine and that “fascists” orchestrated street protests in 2013 and 2014 that opposed closer economic ties with Russia..

Vladimir Putin's forces have been accused of keeping Ukrainians in refrigerators before carting them off to Russia, according to a Ukraine human rights organisation. Grim reports from officials in Ukraine say that troops abducted, threatened and deported civilians in the towns of Gostomel, Irpen and Bucha during their failed assault on Kyiv this year.The Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs now believes that dozens of deported civilians are being held in Russian jails, and are likely facing torture.Numerous reports of kidnappings also remain unresolved, with some families still trying to find missing members nearly a month after Russians retreated from the area.Some have been taken to Russia and Belarus under the guise of 'evacuation', where they are in fact placed in camps and not allowed to leave.One witness to the alleged atrocities described being threatened with death and separated from his loved ones as he was forced into a terrifying interrogation.The man, named Oleg, was placed under blindfold with close family near an airfield in Ukraine and had a gun held to his temple when his own son ran out to tell soldiers that he should not be killed.His entire family was then transported in the armoured personnel carrier, while blindfolded, before being put into a disused refrigeration unit.For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.Oleg told human rights organisation the Media Initiative for Human Rights (MIPL): "We were placed in non-functioning refrigerators in a dilapidated dining room.

Vladimir Putin. Rumours of an affair between her and the Russian president began circulating in 2008 after she was dubbed “Russia’s most eligible woman”.Russian newspaper Moskovsky Korrespondent ran a story claiming Putin had divorced his wife, Lyudmila Putina, and was going to marry Kabaeva.However, the Kremlin soon denied this and the newspaper was completely shutdown soon after.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentVersatile British actor Ben Whishaw, best known globally for playing Q in five James Bond films, has been cast in what’s bound to be the one of the most complex roles of his career.The actor will play the titular character in “Limonov, The Ballad of Eddie,” a new English-language film by revered Russian auteur Kirill Serebrennikov (“Petrov’s Flu,” “Leto”), about radical Russian poet and political dissident Eduard Limonov.The film, which will be presented as a promo reel to buyers in Cannes on May 17, is inspired by the best-selling novel “Limonov” by French writer and director Emmanuelle Carrère, which was translated in 35 countries.“Limonov” delves into the story of Eduard Limonov, who lived many lives. He was an underground writer in the Soviet Union who escaped to the U.S.

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentIconoclastic Russian auteur Kirill Serebrennikov (“Leto,” “Petrov’s Flu”) will be unveiling footage in Cannes from his new work-in-progress film “Limonov, the Ballad of Eddie,” starring Ben Whishaw as radical Russian poet and dissident Eduard Limonov and Viktoria Miroshnichenko (“Beanpole”) as his wife Elena.Serebrennikov, who will coming to Cannes with his latest completed work “Tchaikovsky’s Wife,” premiering in competition, was shooting “Limonov” in Russia when the war broke out. The director has since been able to leave the country and will complete the rest of the shoot in Europe.A “Limonov” promo reel will be unspooled for buyers in Cannes on May 17.

Pussy Riot’s Masha Alyokhina has escaped from Russia as president Vladimir Putin continues to crack down on dissidents in the country.Alyokhina, along with her bandmates, has been arrested and imprisoned multiple times over the past decade and more for publicly protesting Putin’s rule, most recently last year when she was detained for 48 hours after attending protests encouraging others to protest on social media.Amid the continued Russian invasion of Ukraine, a new story in The New York Times reveals that Alyokhina was under house arrest and, when authorities decided to turn that into a 21-day jail sentence last month, she decided to flee Russia.The story outlines Alyokhina’s escape, which included posing as a food courier and being placed on Russia’s wanted list after being refused entry into Belarus on account of her Russian passport having been confiscated by authorities.The report then reveals that Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson was able to assist Alyokhina in getting her a travel document from a European country that allowed her to travel freely from Russia to the EU. It adds that she has now travelled to Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania.“I still don’t understand completely what I’ve done,” she said in the piece.

Vladimir Putin is "more dangerous" than both Adolf Hitler and Joseph Stalin, the Polish Prime Minister has claimed. Mateusz Morawiecki said that the Russian President is more of a threat as he has advanced weapons at his disposal, such as a nuclear arsenal.He also noted that, compared to the 20th century dictators, Putin can channel "the new media at his fingertips to spread his propaganda" more effectively.

Vladimir Putin's health may be failing during his Victory Day speech on Monday (May 9), a body language expert has claimed. The Russian President was spotted with a blanket over his legs, something that none of the other Kremlin dignitaries deemed necessary for themselves in the 9C Moscow weather.