Russian extras were recruited on social media platforms and offered money and free merchandise to pack out a patriotic stadium rally helmed by President Vladimir Putin in Moscow Wednesday, according to reports. Putin, 70, praised troops who he said were defending the fatherland during the celebration at the Luzhniki Stadium, which was festooned with oversized Russian flags. Friday marks the one-year anniversary of the defiant leader’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, which he has continued to call a “special military operation” and repeatedly tried to blame the West for. The festivities were attended by a crowd estimated to be around 200,000...
