Kadirov: after Mariupol we will also take Kiev

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadirov said on Monday that not only is a Russian offensive against the beleaguered Ukrainian port city of Mariupol planned, but that there will also be new attacks on the capital Kiev and other cities in the country. Kadirov is a staunch ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“There will be an offensive… not only against Mariupol, but also against other places, towns and villages,” Kadirov said in a video he distributed via Telegram. “We will liberate Luhansk and Donetsk completely first… Then we will take Kiev and all the other cities.”

Chechnya is a Russian republic. According to Kadirov, Chechen fighters are currently active in Ukraine to assist the Russians. In mid-March, he also claimed to be in the country himself.