Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared 2025 the "Year of the Defender of the Fatherland," but the soldiers whose patriotism he wants to champion could pose a threat to his rule when they return from fighting against Ukraine.

The cousin of Vice President JD Vance, who volunteered in Ukraine, has said that the Trump administration is acting like “useful idiots” for Russian President Vladimir Putin. Nate Vance is reported to have spent three years fighting in Ukraine after Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.