An exiled Russian oligarch has warned Vladimir Putin's next step could be the invasion of the Baltic countries Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Mikhail Khodorkovsky said the Russian President is 'at war with the US and NATO'.
He told CNN : "We must understand that, in his head, Putin is at war not with Ukraine, he's at war with the United States and NATO.
"He said this more than once."
Khodorkovsky said Putin's 'propagandists' have already been started to prepare Russia for an attack on NATO countries.
"I'm absolutely convinced that, if Putin decides that he has won in Ukraine, this is not going to be the last step, the last war," Khodorkovsky said, "the next steps will be the Baltic countries."
Khodorkovsky was jailed for a decade by Russian courts on “political charges" . Since his 2013 release, he has been a critic of Putin's regime, Business Insider reports.
Vladimir Putin's forces have been accused of genocide after evidence of summary executions, torture and rape was found in areas formerly under their control.
Harrowing images from Bucha, on the outskirts of capital Kyiv, show bodies piled up in the street, with witnesses saying many appeared to have been shot while their hands were bound behind their backs.
A bombshell report by Human Rights Watch yesterday said Russian forces had carried out "unspeakable, deliberate cruelty and violence" directed toward the Ukrainian population.
Putin's troops have been accused of carrying out a "massacre" that "could amount to genocide" in Bucha, while allegations of violence toward civilians have been documented across the country.
It is now feared that barbaric acts will be uncovered in cities such as Mariupol, which has been the focus of Russian invaders, with missiles raining down on the population for weeks.
