World turns on 'madman' Putin as minister urges Russian generals to stage a COUP and end 'illogical' leader's 'Tsarist fantasy'
Foreign Office minister James Cleverly has made an appeal to Russian generals
- He urged them to step in to stop 'illogical' Vladimir Putin's 'Tsarist fantasy'
- Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the early hours of the morning
- Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny condemned the war at a trial hearing
By CHAY QUINN and JAMES TAPSFIELD, POLITICAL EDITOR FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 00:58 AEDT, 25 February 2022 | UPDATED: 04:10 AEDT, 25 February 2022
World leaders and former officials has turned on 'insane' Vladimir Putin as a Foreign Office minister urged Russian generals to stage a coup to stop his 'Tsarist fantasy'.
FCDO minister James Cleverly said military chiefs know the Russian president is increasingly 'isolated' and 'illogical' as he tries to 'recreate a Russian Empire in his mind'. *FCDO ; Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
And in a highly unusual step, he effectively appealed for them to stage a coup - saying 'they are in a position to stop this and we call on them to do so'.
James Cleverly (left) said military chiefs know Vladimir Putin (right) is increasingly 'isolated' and 'illogical' as he tries to 'recreate a Russian Empire in his mind'
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former Secretary-General of NATO, told ITV's Peston programme that Russia's current behaviour is not rational or logical.
Czech President Miloš Zeman said it was a mistake that he once believed that Putin was not 'crazy enough' to attack Ukraine - calling the autocrat a 'madman'.
The extraordinary intervention came as ministers warned that Mr Putin looking increasingly unstable, after a bizarre address to the nation where he ranted at length about the Soviet Union's history.
Ukrainian MP Vadym Galaichuk echoed this during an interview on Sky News when he said: 'The Kremlin has just gone bonkers.'
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said yesterday that he appeared to have 'gone Tonto'.
One Cabinet minister told MailOnline earlier this week that the Russian premier might have been playing too much 'Call of Duty'.
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former Secretary-General of NATO, told ITV's Peston programme that Russia's current behaviour is not rational or logical
Czech President Miloš Zeman said it was a mistake that he once believed that Putin was not 'crazy enough' to attack Ukraine - calling the autocrat a 'madman'.
A column of army trucks passes a police post in the town of Armyansk, northern Crimea today
Boris Johnson today vowed to 'hobble' the Russian economy with a 'massive' package of sanctions as he insisted the West 'will not look away' from the invasion of Ukraine.
In speech from Downing Street, the PM said Vladimir Putin cannot be allowed to 'snuff out' freedom in Ukraine with an act of 'wanton and reckless aggression.
He said Mr Putin had 'unleashed war' on the continent and the West must respond to ensure the eventual 'failure' of his offensive 'diplomatically, politically, economically, and eventually, militarily'. In a hard message to Germany and Italy among others, Mr Johnson also called for countries to wean themselves off gas and oil supplies from Moscow.
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'Today, in concert with our allies we will agree a massive package of economic sanctions designed in time to hobble the Russian economy. And to that end, we must also collectively cease the dependence on Russian oil and gas that for too long has given Putin his grip on Western politics,' he said.
'Our mission is clear. Diplomatically, politically, economically, and eventually, militarily, this hideous and barbaric venture of Vladimir Putin must end in failure.'
During a round of interviews this morning, Mr Cleverly told Sky News: 'Ukraine is not part of Russia. The fantasy that President Putin is trying to play out – creating some kind of Tsarist expansionist Russia – absolutely has to be stopped.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said yesterday that he appeared to have 'gone Tonto'.
Boris Johnson today declared that Putin has 'chosen a path of bloodshed and destruction' in Ukraine after launching a 'horrific attacks' on its neighbour
Russia has invaded Ukraine from the north, south and east while firing in missiles all over the country
He added: 'The military leaders around Vladimir Putin, they must know that this is a catastrophically bad judgment call by Vadimir Putin.
'Ukraine is a huge country physically. I have no doubt the Ukrainian people will be ferocious in defence of their homelands.
'The military leaders must know that this will come at a huge cost – not just to Ukrainians but to Russians.
'They are in a position, even if Vladimir Putin won't, they are in a position to stop this and we call on them to do so.'
Jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny said he was against Moscow's invasion of Ukraine as he stood trial from prison after President Vladimir Putin launched an attack.
Alexei Navalny used an appearance at his trial for old fraud charges to condemn Putin's war in Ukraine (file photo)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIHdWJyaun0
'I am against this war,' Navalny was heard saying in a video of the in-prison trial published by independent news outlet Dozhd.
'This war between Russia and Ukraine was unleashed to cover up the theft from Russian citizens and divert their attention from problems that exist inside the country,' he said.
Wearing a prison uniform, Navalny said the war would 'lead to a huge number of victims, destroyed futures and the continuation of this line of impoverishment of the citizens of Russia.'
He is being tried inside the maximum security prison where he is held outside Moscow on fresh charges that could see his time behind bars extended by a decade.
His allies have said that the trial - which opened last week - has been purposefully timed to coincide with the Ukraine crisis.
Navalny has been behind bars for a year on old fraud charges, after surviving a poison attack he and the West blame on the Kremlin.