LONDON: After bombings shook sections of Moldova, Russia raised worries that the tiny nation would be next in line for President Vladimir Putin's wrath, according to the Daily Mail.

"Moldova should be concerned about their own future," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said when questioned about the risks of violence spilling into Ukraine's neighbour after explosions shook its Transnistria area. They're being dragged into NATO." Transnistria is a breakaway area in Moldova's east that is dominated by ethnic Ukrainians and Russians.

The tensions arise as UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace predicts that Putin would use Russia's Victory Day to launch a stepped-up offensive against Ukraine, as well as the possible opening of new warfronts.

Wallace predicted that Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose progress in Ukraine has fallen far short of expectations, would declare war on the world's 'Nazis' at the May 9 ceremony in Moscow commemorating the Soviet Union's victory over Hitler.

"I would not be surprised... if Putin declares on May Day that "we are now at war with the world's Nazis and we need to mass mobilise the Russian people," Wallace told LBC Radio. Analysts predicted that Putin wanted to be in a position where he could declare victory on May 9. However, given Russia's lacklustre performance on the battlefield, he may now want to escalate.

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