VICIOUS VLAD'S WW3 WARNING

Putin NATO threat after sham poll win | Russian tyrant in China link-up pledge

- CHRIS HUGHES

VLADIMIR Putin yesterday warned a clash between Russia and NATO could leave the West on the brink of World War III.

The tyrant spoke out after his sham election win in which he was voted back in as president for a fifth term.

Asked if conflict could erupt with NATO, Putin said: "Everything is possible in today's world.

"It's clear to everyone that it will put us a step away from full-scale World War III."

He also pledged his allegiance to China, which the West views as the biggest threat in the future.

Putin rigged the elections using spooks - even using the names of dead soldiers he sent to their deaths in Ukraine.

Any public criticism of the dictator or his war in Ukraine has been stifled during the polls. Independent media was silenced and his fiercest political foe, Alexei Navalny, died in an Arctic prison last month. Other critics are either in jail or in exile.