MOSCOW - One of Vladimir's Putin's most visible propagandists has launched a rant against Germany's decision to send tanks to Ukraine.
Kyiv has been urging Western nations to send tanks to Ukraine for months, in order to give its forces more firepower and mobility it hopes will be able to break through enemy defensive lines and recapture territory occupied by Russia.
Germany has previously resisted the calls but chancellor Olaf Scholz has now confirmed Berlin will send 14 Leopard tanks while also approving the export of Leopards by third countries such as Poland.
Reacting to the news, Vladimir Solovyov, a Russian television journalist and apologist of the Kremlin leadership who has been dubbed "Putin's voice", described German leaders as "Nazi scumbags".
During his show, Evening with Vladimir Solovyov, the propagandist ranted: "I think it's time to send a clear, resolute message that we consider Germany a party to the conflict and that German tanks appearing in Ukraine will definitely lead us to considering Germany territory, military bases and other sites to be legitimate targets.
"Nato wants to fight in this cunning way, pretending that it's not fighting. In your dreams."
The comments were shared on Twitter by journalist Francis Scarr.
Solovyov, who has previously called on the death penalty for soldiers, described German defence minister Boris Pistorius as a "cretin who led Germany to ending up as a zone of direct destruction", and also aimed his fire at Scholz.
He went on: "We're the aggressor? For eight years you b****rds have nurtured the Nazi Ukrainian regime. For eight years you've been killing the people of Donbas...
"But what are you posing as now? You European Pharisees, you Nazi scumbags."
Solovyov urged Russia to carry out strikes on Germany so that Germans "know which new Nazi leaders they've raised and brought to power".
Scholz had previously held back on the call to send tanks to Ukraine over fears it could cause Moscow to escalate the conflict further.
The company of German-made Leopards – that usually comprise of 14 tanks – will be sent in conjunction with other countries in possession of the units.
Berlin is also giving its permission for export licences for countries such as Finland, Sweden and Poland to send the tanks to Ukraine.
The decision would mark the first time that German tanks will be used on the battlefield in Europe since the Second World War.
Solovyov's rant about the decision will come as no surprise to many, as the US government has previously identified him as a key Putin propagandist.
He uses his television platform to "spread Russian government propaganda and disinformation", according to US government reports.
They note he has made several false claims, including that Ukrainians are killing their own civilians to frame Russia and blaming the poisonings of Sergei Skripal and Aleksey Navalny on the West in an attempt to frame Moscow.
Solovyov’s channels are blocked by YouTube because he violated the site’s policy on the promotion of violence.
