THE Vladimir Putin made a public statement about him war in Ukraine (“special operation” as Moscow calls it) in the framework of the one-year anniversary of the illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories, having a strange mark on his forehead.

The Russian president appeared in public with the mark on his forehead while pledging to “total victory” regarding the integration of Ukrainian regions into Russia.

As he explained, “nothing and no one” it won’t stop Russia from winning the war in Ukraine.

Putin, who turns 71 next week, promised citizens that “nothing and no one will stop him”.

The Russian president claimed he acted to restore “something that every person values, namely culture, traditions and mother tongue” among the regions’ mostly Russian-speaking residents.

That was “whatever they hated the nationalists the most and their Western patrons who orchestrated a coup in Kiev in 2014, then unleashed a civil war and terror against dissidents and organized blockades, continuous shelling and punitive actions in the Donbass,” he added.

Seeking to justify his war, he vowed: “Nothing and no one can bend the will of millions of people or their belief in truth and historical justice. The free and unquestionable choice of our brothers was wholeheartedly supported by the Russian people. We understood and deeply felt the most important thing: we defend our compatriots in Donbass and ‘Novorossiya’ (New Russia) , we are defending Russia itself.”

“Together, we fight for the Motherland, for sovereignty, our spiritual values, unity and victory. I thank all citizens of the country for this solidarity and patriotism,” Vladimir Putin added.