Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, noting that President Vladimir Putin is behaving like Fulani killer herdsmen terrorising innocent people.

Making a comparison of Mr Putin’s invasion of Ukraine to the killer herdsmen in Nigeria in an interview with Channels TV on Monday, Mr Soyinka berated the Russian leader. 

“Would you have anticipated Putin invading Ukraine? Bombarding civilians with such fiendish glee? And what is Ukraine’s crime? It says leave me to associate with whoever I want,” Mr Soyinka said.

He further noted, “And I ask myself, what is the difference between Putin and the herdsmen who corner the lands of farmers and invade? They kill. They slaughter. They burn, scatter the families completely, and render them homeless overnight. They and Putin should get together. It is the same mentality.” 

In the interview, Mr Soyinka added, “The idea that you can unleash terror on me because you want my little patch of territory or you want my soul, that is you want to subjugate me, you want to turn me into a slave. Well, I would sort that out first, and then I’ll make up my mind whether I want to leave.”

In February, Russian soldiers invaded Ukraine, a development widely condemned across the globe with world powers sanctioning Russia, while multinational brands left the country in solidarity with Ukraine. 

Since the invasion, at least 9,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed, according to General Valeriy Zaluzhny, Ukraine’s commander-in-chief.