Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin has expressed that it has become "obvious" that attacks on the Russian President are "aimed at destroying Russia."

Addressing Putin's critics and opposers, Volodin wrote on his Telegram channel that "it has turned out that you do not know the people of our country at all."

The US President has referred to Putin as a "war criminal," which the Kremlin slammed as unacceptable coming from the leader of a country that has killed hundreds of thousands, and the Senate adopted a resolution recently that condemns Putin and Russia over the military operation in Ukraine. 

🚨This marks the first time the administration has referred to the Russian President as a war criminal - until now, officials have shied away from that language.

POTUS tells me “I think he is a war criminal”

(Thanks to @kwelkernbc for the camera work 🎥) pic.twitter.com/u4fLdkxMbt

— Jacqui Heinrich (@JacquiHeinrich) March 16, 2022

Yesterday, the Russian President said Moscow's ongoing military operation in Ukraine is successful and going according to plan.

"The operation is developing successfully, in strict accordance with pre-approved plans," Putin told a meeting on measures to support the regions. The mission will be "completed", he added.

Putin stressed that Russian forces being near the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, does not mean that Russia aims to occupy the country.

Russia had launched a special military operation for several reasons, such as NATO's eastward expansion, the Ukrainian shelling of Donbass, and the killing of the people of the Donetsk People's Republic and Lugansk People's Republic, as well as denazifying and demilitarizing Ukraine.