Prince William this week visited British troops in Estonia, which borders Russia, and drew the scorn of several people in the Kremlin who made threats against the heir to the throne
Dmitry Rogozin inspects a drone-making plant
A crony of Vladimir Putin who heads a specialist military drone unit has made a veiled threat against Prince William after he took a ride in a tank as he visited British troops.
Dmitry Rogozin was on a tour of a drone-making plant when he beckoned towards a picture of the heir to the throne behind the wheel of a British Challenger 2 tank near the Russian border in Estonia. The prince wore full military uniform, took a ride in the tank and took part in a trench warfare training exercise while visiting British troops deployed near Russia today. The image seemingly caught the attention of Rogozin who made a sinister threat against the royal father of three.
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Rogozin, 61, who also acts as a Kremlin-appointed senator for part of annexed Ukrainian area Zaporizhzhia, said: “This is a great target for my drone pilots. We haven’t yet zeroed out the heir to the throne, let alone the traditionally hostile Great Britain.
“Let him do some PR for now. But if he gets into our sights, we won’t stand on ceremony.”
“The whole war is still ahead. We need motivated and well-trained volunteers in the profile of our combat activities.”
Rogozin is a former Putin deputy premier and ex-head of the Russian Space Agency, when he was in charge of tests of 15,880mph Satan-2. Also known as Sarmat, it is the Kremlin’s largest hypersonic nuclear rocket, the size of a 14-storey tower block, weighing 208 tons.
The threat by Rogozin, who was once Russian ambassador to NATO and was wounded in his bottom earlier in the war by a Ukrainian shell strike on his birthday party in Donetsk – was one of several from Putin’s war fanatics Prince William ’s tank appearance. Aleksei Zhivov, a Russian military volunteer and political analyst, said: “Britain’s heir to the throne, Prince William, popped over to Estonia to take a spin in a tank near the Russian border.
“That’s a pretty blunt message from the Royal Family to Moscow. William also said he was there to show support for Estonia, which is ‘dangerously close to Russia’.
“Well then, I suggest the Royal Family help move Estonia somewhere safer—Wales or Ireland, maybe? Just a reminder – Britain’s not exactly far from Russia either. About 20 minutes by air, give or take [with a Putin missile].”
During Prince William’s visit he wore a military camouflage outfit and beret and was met at the NATO base by UK defence attaché Rob Hall. Soldiers from the 1st Estonian brigade were introduced to the future king who asked them about the first six months of their training.
Speaking to the 13 soldiers chosen to meet him, William said: “It’s great to meet you guys and great to be here. How’s it working with the Brits? You don’t have to say nice things just because I’m here!”
The soldiers told him their experience had been “good” and “very successful”. William replied: “I bet you guys are pleased it’s going to be spring soon! It gets quite cold here right?” One soldier said: “Spring started yesterday so we are happier now.”