VLADIMIR PUTIN has said that the development of genetically-modified soldiers is the next phase of military combat - and one worse than nuclear bombs.
Vladimir Putin warned a crowd of young students that scientists in Russia will soon break the genetic code and create something "worse than a nuclear bomb".
In a shocking speech yesterday, the Russian leader suggested that his world could soon seen sci-fi super-human soldiers who cannot feel pain or fear.
President Putin said that science is moving at such a fast pace that the world is running out of the time to develop regulation around these eerie advances.
This comes amid escalation on the Korean penisula and mounting fears for the outbreak of nuclear war between North Korea and the US.
The Russian leader revealed that the possibility of "creating a human with predesigned characteristics" was already around the corner.
Speaking to a youth festival in Sochi, Mr Putin said: "A man has the opportunity to get into the genetic code created by either nature, or as religious people would say, by the God.
"All kinds of practical consequences may follow. One may imagine that a man can create a man not only theoretically but also practically.
"He can be a genius mathematician, a brilliant musician or a soldier, a man who can fight without fear, compassion, regret or pain.
"As you understand, humanity can enter, and most likely it will in the near future, a very difficult and very responsible period of its existence.
"What I have just described might be worse than a nuclear bomb."
The Russian leader went on to warn that these developments are inevitable, but he urged world leaders to come together to develop ethical guidelines around such 'creations'.
He said: "When we do something, whatever we do, I want to reiterate it again - we must never forget about the ethical foundations of our work."
The festival Putin spoke at was organized by the World Federation of Democratic Youth (WFDY) along with the International Union of Students