As well as Mr Putin’s friend, Russian celebrities have led a public outcry over the Ukraine crisis with many posting black squares on social media with a “no war” hashtag.
In the early hours of Thursday morning, Mr Putin gave orders to his troops to attack Ukraine, announcing to the Russian nation that the “special military operation” was to “de-Nazify” Ukraine.
Ksenia Sobchak, a socialite and former Russian presidential, spoke out against the attack.
Ms Sobchak has previously denied that she is the Russian leader’s goddaughter but has admitted that he attended her baptism.
Posting today, Ksenia, wrote: “Today they woke me up at six in the morning with the words ‘Ksyusha, the war has begun.
“Not on our land, [but] with our people, yes.
“We, the Russians, will be dealing with the consequences of today for many years to come.”
Anastasia Ivleeva, a Russian actress and presenter, also posted a black square on her Instagram page, with the caption “No war'”.
Another actress, Irina Starshenbaum, wrote: ‘How did we get to this point? Nothing justifies war and I have no words to express the pain and horror of this morning. Ukrainians, please forgive me for being helpless. We want an immediate end to these heinous acts.”
Former World Champion figure skater Evgenia Medvedevа commented: “I hope this all ends as soon as possible, like a bad dream.”
Ivan Urgant, a leading TV host in the country, also wrote: “Fear and pain. NO to war.”
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As well as celebs declaring their objection against the invasion, more than 150 senior Russian officials have signed an open letter condemning Putin’s actions as “an unprecedented atrocity” and warned of “catastrophic consequences”.
Among the signatories were Moscow deputies Maxim Gongalsky, Polina Sizova, Elena Rusakova, Andrey Morev, Elena Kotenochkina and Elena Filina as well as St Petersburg officials David Kuvaev and Veliky Novgorod deputy Anna Cherepanova.
The contributors said they were convinced the county’s citizens do not back the war and held Putin personally responsible for the attack for which they say there is no justification.
In the letter, the officials urged Russian citizens to speak out as they believe only “massive popular condemnation can stop the war”.
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The decision to condemn Putin’s actions was a surprising move for Russian officials who historically rarely go up against their controversial leader.
The deputies warned that Russia would face severe consequences for the invasion, including “the condemnation of the world community”, resulting in “isolation, rising prices and poverty”.
Shortly after the attack began, heartbreaking images of bloodied Ukrainian civilians have emerged online, with some others believed to be dead.
Despite the photographic documentation, Russia’s defence ministry claims “there is no threat to civilian population”, and said they are not targeting cities but using precision weapons.
The Ukrainian army continues to fight the Russians in almost every region of the country, to stop them from seizing control of their military bases, airports, cities and ports.
