Putin TV propagandist takes aim at people in Cardiff saying they are 'eating ... trends now
Russian state TV has attacked the UK over claims people have been forced to eat cat food, heat meals on radiators and turn to prostitution as they face soaring costs.
Pro-Putin newsreader Olga Skabeyeva, a longtime supporter of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, gloated over the cost of living crisis In Germany and Britain.
She said: 'In Britain it's even worse [than Germany]. Because of rising costs residents of Cardiff are now eating cat food, and are heating food on radiators.
'And British women are resorting to prostitution, and are having sex in order to survive, so sex for food and heating, sex for survival.'
Russian state TV propagandist Olga Skabeyeva delivered a monologue claiming Britain was buckling under rising costs
The TV host claimed people in Cardiff were eating cat food and heating their meals on radiators
The outlandish claimed referred to a BBC news report in December on a food bank in Cardiff.
A community worker at the food bank told the broadcaster there were people eating pet food and heating food on a radiator as they struggled with the cost of living crisis.
He told the BBC Wales team: 'I'm still shocked by the fact that we have people who are eating pet food.
'There are people who are trying to heat their food on a radiator or a candle.
'These are shocking kind of stories that are actually the truth.'
'Cardiff is a flourishing city, however there are pockets of deprivation which are simply not acceptable.'
The Financial Times has also reported cases of woman turning to sex work to bring in more income during the cost of living crisis and referred to one woman doing so in Cardiff, but the extent of this is not clear.
Welsh social media users mocked the Russian TV report, with one saying: 'My cat got some fancy 100 per cent chicken cat treats for Xmas, will try one later.'
Another replied: 'I ate some cat biscuits as a kid, not because of lack of food, but you know, kid things and curiosity... I'll bring them round and we can have a slap up meal.'
One joked: 'Not true at all. I will have you know that I was eating it out of choice. My neighbour did not stick around for the explanation, which made things worse.'
And another replied: 'Try Fray Bentos next time. Similar but with pastry.'
The claim was an exaggerated version of a BBC report documenting people in Cardiff struggling with the cost of living crisis
The Russian state broadcaster claimed people in the UK were turning to 'sex for survival'
The claims were roundly mocked on social media after the host's wild claims were shared online
Putin's 'Iron Doll': How Russia wheels out doom-mongering 'monster' TV host Olga Skabeyeva
Among the prominent Russian television personalities pushing Vladimir Putin's propaganda about his on-going invasion of Ukraine, one in particular has caught the attention of media watchers.
Even before the war began Putin's 'Iron Doll' Olga Skabeyeva was regularly spouting wild pro-Kremlin rants which have only intensified since Russian troops crossed into Ukraine on February 24.
Along with her husband Yevgeny Popov, she has spread baseless conspiracy theories, overstated Moscow's war successes, parroted Kremlin lies about 'Nazis' in Ukraine, and issued dire warnings of World War Three and threats against the West.
Olga Skabeyeva, dubbed Putin's 'Iron Doll', regularly spouts wild pro-Kremlin rants which have only intensified since Russian troops crossed into Ukraine on February 24
It is unclear when exactly Skabeyeva met and married husband Popov (pictured together in an Instagram post), but they now rank among Russia's richest propagandists with a combined fortune of more than 300 million roubles ($4 million)
Skabeyeva has spread baseless conspiracy theories, overstated Moscow's war successes, parroted Kremlin lies about Nazis in Ukraine, and issued dire warnings of World War Three and threats against the West. As a result, she has been branded a 'monster' by commentators
As a result, she has been branded a 'monster' by commentators, with other analysts suggesting her sabre-rattling rhetoric has marked a shift in the Kremlin's tone.
In her most recent appearance, the 37-year-old mother joined other Putin propagandists on Russia1's 'Evening Vladimir Solovyov', where they gloated over the death sentences handed to two Britons fighting in Ukraine.
The panel callously laughed at the prospect of the pair being shot while accusing the British government of doing 'nothing' to help them.
In her own segment, Skabeyeva accused the British Foreign Office of being unsure how to help Aiden Aslin, 28, and Shaun Pinner, 48, who were sentenced to death by firing squad last week by a rogue court in the 'Donetsk People's Republic'.
She specifically mocked Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, a favourite target of Russian state media, after she spoke out last week to condemn the sentences which she said had 'absolutely no legitimacy'.
'London aims to work on freeing Pinner and Aslin, but they don't know how to do it,' Skabeyeva told viewers.
'Liz Truss, the head of the Foreign Office, called the sentence illegal and promised to pull the Englishmen out - and do it via Kyiv. Good luck, Liz,' she mocked.
But this was not the first time Skabeyeva has shamelessly shilled for Putin and parroted the Kremlin party line on Russian television.
In fact, she has made a career out of it. In doing so she has carved out her own fame and fortune in Russia and with her husband - another Putin mouthpiece - hosts the 60 Minutes social and political talk show on Russia-1.
Born in 1984 under the Soviet Union, Skabeyeva went on to study journalism at the Faculty of Journalism at
