Vladimir Putin has been told to halt his interminable war in Ukraine for the sake of humanity during a meeting in Kyrgyzstan with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The war has become a ruinous contest of drone and missile attacks that, while devastating to Ukraine, are inflicting visible damage on Russia too. But Mr Putin shows no sign of backing off. The worry is that he may try to escape from what Russians call a tupik (dead-end) as he has in the past: by finding some new way to escalate the conflict.

The Russian and Chinese leaders met on the sidelines of the SCO summit.

Ukraine unleashed a major drone attack across Russia overnight, throwing Moscow’s airports into chaos just hours after CIA Director John Ratcliffe left the capital following a secretive visit. Russian air defenses shot down at least 10 drones heading toward Moscow in the early hours of Wednesday,

Sources close to the Kremlin have claimed Mr Putin has chosen to escalate the war, fearing he could face backlash from the Russian public if he ends the conflict without being able to claim victory.

There is little sign that public exhaustion, economic headwinds or increased Ukrainian strikes are changing the Russian leader’s view that he will eventually achieve victory.

A Russian couple just returning from vacation to their quiet neighborhood in St. Petersburg was running errands Thursday morning when an improvised explosive device tore through their vehicle. The driver,

Moscow increasingly views Ukraine's strikes inside Russia as attacks by NATO countries because alliance members provide Kyiv with weapons and intelligence, according to Bloomberg. People close to the Kremlin warned that the current fighting has not yet reached its peak level of escalation.