Europe Reporters

  — For two decades, Vladimir Putin has struck rivals as reckless, impulsive. But his behavior in ordering an invasion of Ukraine — and now putting Russia’s nuclear forces on high alert — has some in the West questioning whether the Russian president has become dangerously unstable. In recent days, Putin has  rambled on television  about Ukraine, repeated conspiracy theories about neo-Nazism and Western aggression, berated his own foreign intelligence chief on camera from the other side of a high-domed Kremlin hall where he sat alone. Now, with the West’s  sanctions  threatening to cripple Russia’s  already hobbled economy , Putin has  ordered  the higher state of readiness for nuclear weapons, blaming the sanctions and what he called “aggressive statements against our country.”

  Russia's attack on  Ukraine  stretched into its sixth day Tuesday, with a massive armored convoy advancing toward the capital, Kyiv, and major cities hit by more heavy shelling. In Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, video captured an explosion at the regional state administration building that left at least six people injured, including one child. First responders said a death toll was yet to come. Ukrainian officials condemned the attack, with foreign affairs minister Dmytro Kuleba branding it a "barbaric" assault as he accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of  war crimes . On Monday, the International Criminal Court said it would open an investigation into whether Russia has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine. The decision was announced hours after  peace talks in Belarus  ended without any clear progress. The Western response to Russia's invasion has been swift, with widening  sanctions  hitting  Russia's...