Putin To Deliver Speech, Speculation 2nd Mobilisation Could Be Announced

Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to deliver an address later today in St. Petersburg on the marking the 80th anniversary of Soviet forces breaking the German siege of what was then Leningrad in WWII. There is intense speculation that Putin could use the address to announce a second mobilisation to boost the number of troops available, or could change the definition of the conflict from a 'special military operation' to war.

• No set time for the address. 1600 local time (0800ET/1300GMT/1400CET) doing the rounds on social media, but this is completely unconfirmed and should be viewed as a rumour at present.
• If a second mobilisation is announced, it would mark a potentially vulnerable point for Putin. The last mobilisation, which called up reserves, saw some protests take place in Russian cities. While not enough to cause any notable concern for the Putin gov't, the incidents demonstrated that the population may be content with the war affecting Ukraine but not if the impact begins to hit normal Russian citizens.
• Speaking earlier today, Putin stated that, on the Donbas: “We were simply led by the nose, deceived. This is not the first time this has happened and happens to us. Nevertheless, we have done our best to resolve this situation by peaceful means. It has now become clear that this was, by definition, impossible."