A Russian city has erected a group of eerie ice sculptures of soldiers as Vladimir Putin's bloody war in Ukraine rolls on this Christmas.
Festive comfort and joy have been replaced with a crude Christmassy patriotism in the Russian city of Chita, which is nestled in the heart of Siberia and around 3,000 miles from Moscow.
In the city centre, the traditional Slavic Grandfather Frost, who plays the same role as Santa Claus in Russia, has been replaced with Putin's twisted pro-war propaganda.
Outside the city's concert hall, a metal snowman holds a flagpole in its hand as it flies the Russian tricolour overhead.
Meanwyhile, Chita's Lenin Square is adorned with several Christmas trees, but rather than baubles and tinsel, each is decorated with the letter "Z" - a symbol that has become synonymous with Russia's war effort.
Rather than writing festive letters to Santa, Chita's children have been penning notes to soldiers taking a beating on the front lines, the BBC reports.
But the centrepiece of the warmongering city are the militarised ice sculpture soldiers - which officials erected in the hopes of drumming up patriotism and support for the flailing war into the New Year.
According to the BBC, most locals agree with the decision.
A woman identified only as Tatyana told the broadcaster: "We're fighting a war.
"So it's right to have these ice soldiers here. They're topical."
"It's an unusual way of celebrating the New Year," a woman called Ludmila added.
"Normally you'd have Santa Claus, bunny rabbits or squirrels. But it's a sign of the times."
Ludmila said she was concerned by recent developments in Ukraine and feared for her friends sent to fight, but stressed that Russian soldiers are defending the "motherland".
When asked what she meant, she went on a tirade, spouting lines from the Kremlin's own propaganda playbook.
"Defend it from Nazis. There are a lot of them around," Ludmila replies.
"Russia's being attacked on all fronts, including with LGBT propaganda. They're trying to force this upon us. We reject these alien ideas.
"We embrace Russian values. It's hard for me to explain this in words. I just feel it."
The Kremlin's lies have clearly taken hold, managing to convince the domestic masses of an existential threat to Russia's sovereignty.
The BBC's Russia Editor Steve Rosenberg added that he often hears citizens repeating "word for word" the anti-Western drivel broadcast by the state media apparatus.
