Putin has long viewed nostalgia as a powerful means of reassuring — and subduing — the public. Putin revived the Soviet anthem and restored the Red Army flag as the official banner of the military.

The regime is grappling with the collapse of its regional "Axis of Resistance" and mounting economic troubles at home.

A Ukrainian drone attack killed one civilian in the Russian region of Belgorod bordering Ukraine, the regional governor said on Sunday. Ukraine drone attack kills one in Russia's Belgorod ...