TYRANT Vladimir Putin should invade three cities in major Nato countries, a Russian general has urged.
Major Nikolay Plotnikov, speaking on state TV, said the warmonger president needs to correct a “historical mistake” to bring Russia back to Soviet glory.
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The tank commander said Moscow should grab Narva in Estonia, Daugavpils in Latvia and Klaipeda in Lithuania.
He believes Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin, former Russian dictators, caused an “injustice” by letting the territories go.
Now the Putin crony thinks Moscow should take back the Baltic strongholds.
He also took the opportunity to threaten the same countries, telling them to stop showing support for Ukraine during Vlad’s illegal war.
Plotnikov, now a professor at the propagandist Institute of Oriental Studies in Moscow, told Putin-controlled state TV: “Younger colleagues told me it is time to correct the historical injustice perpetrated by Vladimir Lenin, when the Russian Empire collapsed, and [Soviet dictator] Josef Stalin.”
He explained that this ‘correction’ meant to “bring back into Russia Narva [Estonia], Dvinsk, now known as Daugavpils [Latvia] and Memel, now known as Klaipeda [Lithuania]”.
The Russian went on to threaten them: “I would therefore tell all these [Baltic people] not to stir up trouble.”
If Russia did indeed invade said countries, Article 5 of Nato – at its core a military alliance – would be triggered.
Meaning an armed attack on one state amounts to an attack on all of them – leading to joint action against the aggressor.
But the Baltic countries and Poland do intend to send their troops to help Ukraine, German news outlet Der Spiegel reports.
And the four states are not intending to “sit and wait until the Russians have to be met at their borders”.
The Baltic republics have been boosting their land defences against Russia throughout more than two years of war.
Only days ago The Sun spoke to several former army generals who warned that Putin is looking to expand is sea borders in a move against Nato countries.
Putin’s defence ministry announced a shock bid to change Russian maritime borders with Finland and Lithuania last Wednesday.
Russia is reportedly planning to take over Gotland – east of Sweden – which General Richard Shirreff says would give Putin dangerous levels of control in the Baltics.
Why these cities?
ESTONIA, Lithuania and Latvia have all strongly condemned Putin’s horrific war in Ukraine.
These major Russian-speaking cities in each country are of historical importance when thinking about the Russian empire Putin follows on from.
Geographically they also all provide important elements, like coastal locations, sea ports, industrial centres or key borders.
NARVA – ESTONIA
Narva – which sits on the border between Russia and Estonia – was first occupied by Russia between 1558 and 1581, and then again in 1704.
97 per cent of the almost 60,000 residents there speak Russian.
It borders a river between the two countries – not far from Narva Bay.
On the edge of Nato’s eastern flank by the Baltic Sea, Narva is Estonia’s third biggest city.
There is a red line painted on the point where Narva crosses into Russia – on a bridge over the river.
Estonian border police told the BBC that thousands of Ukrainians have escaped war zones and fled into Estonia through this border crossing.
Narva has welcomed Ukrainian refugees during Putin’s war, the BBC reports.
KLAIPEDA – LITHUANIA
Lithunia downgraded its diplomatic relations with Russia after Putin invaded Ukraine.
It closed its Russian consulate in Klaipeda, which is bordered by Latvia, Belarus and Poland on the Baltic Sea coast.
The third largest city in Lithuania, Klaipeda is a major seaport.
It has the highest number of native Russian speakers among Lithuanian cities.
Under the USSR, Russia turned Klaipeda into a valuable marine base.
DAUGAVPILS – LATVIA
This Latvian city, in the south, is bordered closely by Belarus and Lithuania.
It is the second largest city in the country and well populated.
It is also only 75 miles from the Latvian border with Russia.
Daugavpils is historically a major railway and industrial point – and was part of the Russian Empire in the late 1700s.
It has an overwhelmingly Russian speaking population.
Latvia has strongly condemned Putin’s war in Ukraine, and has been added to a list of all EU countries dubbed “unfriendly” by Putin.
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