A leading Russian television presenter has claimed that World War Three has already begun in a chilling statement following the sinking of the Moskva on Thursday.
The Kremlin received the latest blow after losing another high flying GRU military intelligence agent in Ukraine.
TV host Olga Skabeyeva told Rossiya 1 channel viewers that "what it's escalated into can safely be called World War Three", adding: "that's entirely for sure."
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The presenter said: "Now we're definitely fighting against Nato infrastructure, if not Nato itself. We need to recognise that."
It comes after the sinking of the Russian ship, which sent the Kremlin's main propaganda mouthpiece into meltdown, as the Mirror UK reports.
Ukraine claimed that it struck the flagship of the Black Sea Fleet with cruise missiles. However, Russian officials are yet to acknowledge the operation, which signifies Kyiv's biggest military success since the beginning of the invasion.
Around 500 sailors were said to have been aboard the flagship missile cruiser.
In retaliation, eight towns were attacked, including Kharkiv and Lviv.
Spreading further propaganda, Skabeyeva claimed Ukrainians were delighted to see Russian troops in their country.
She said: "For some reason, ordinary Ukrainians themselves aren't noticing any genocide. In Kharkiv region, they're welcoming our soldiers like real liberators.
"People are coming out with Russian tricolours onto the streets where our military kit is.
"The people of Kharkiv are accusing not the Russian army of genocide, but the Ukrainian armed forces."
The news comes after fears that Vladimir Putin is gearing up for a major military escalation rose after nuclear bombers were caught flying close to the Ukrainian border.
Images of the TU-160 strategic bomber were captured over Western Russian territories as tensions increased following the sinking of the Moskva.
Videos show four aircraft, including one used to carry nuclear bombs, flying over the Kaluga region between the Moscow and Ukrainian border.
The aircraft are believed to be Russian TU-95s, known as Bears, and were seen flying within striking distance of possible targets in Ukraine.
Moscow's defence ministry has not confirmed the purpose of the flights.
The propeller-powered Bears have been used previously to strike targets in Ukraine with non-nuclear weapons such as Kh-55 and Kh-101 air-launched cruise missiles.
The super-loud Tu-95 is the only propeller-powered strategic bomber still in operational use today, and the plane first flew 70 years ago.
The emergence of the videos came less than a day after Volodymyr Zelensky warned Ukrainians to prepare for a possible Russian nuclear attack and called for a stockpile of radiation pills.
He told the world "we must prepare for" the bleak scenario and get hold of medicine that would help curb radiation sickness.
Zelensky made the grim warning in an interview before sharing the clip on his Telegram channel on Saturday evening.
He made a similar announcement on Friday and said nuclear weapons could not be ruled out.
The Ukrainian president said: "We shouldn't wait for the moment when Russia decides to use nuclear weapons... We must prepare for that."
He added he is "convinced" Putin could use any weapon against his people.
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