Billionaire who predicted Covid says 'World War 3 has already started'

A billionaire who bet on the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic has made another prediction, and it’s not good news.

Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman has claimed that “WWIII has likely started already”, saying that a more widespread military conflict with Russia could now be impossible to stop following the invasion of Ukraine.

Ackman has gained a reputation as something of a modern day Nostradamus over recent years.

He appeared on CNBC back in March 2020 when many people still didn’t appreciate the impact the pandemic could have, warning that “hell is coming” and calling for a 30-day lockdown.

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Ackman also made his company Pershing Square Capital $2 billion by betting against stocks that imploded during the pandemic.

Now, he’s made another prediction about the arrival of a possible third world war.

The hedge funder has a track record in accurate predictionsBryan Bedder/Getty Images for The New York Times

“In January 2020, I had nightmares about the potential for a pandemic, but everyone seemed to think I was crazy,” he wrote on Twitter. “I am having similar nightmares now.”

He warned that “WWIII has likely started already, but we have been slow to recognize it.”

“Putin has invaded Ukraine and it is not going well for Russia,' he added.

“The Ukrainians have put up a remarkable resistance. NATO refuses to enter the war, but NATO members and most of the rest of the world have launched an economic war, and are supplying Stingers, anti-tank weapons, other munitions, intelligence, and funding.”

Ackman went on to say: “Putin today declared these actions acts of war against Russia. Yet, there is much more we can do before we enter a hot war with Russia.”

He called for the west to act by announcing an embargo on Russian oil and stated that the US should provide Ukraine “our best weaponry and more of it”.

“Because Russia is a nuclear power and Putin is a madman, we say we can't intervene in the Ukraine. What then do we do when he wants more?” he wrote.

“The nuclear threat is no different when he takes his next country, whether it is part of NATO or not, and by then we are strategically worse off. He has made his ambitions publicly known.”

Whether or not his prediction is proven right, it certainly doesn’t bode well.

It comes after Ukrainian president Volodymr Zelensky's made a powerful address to his people as the conflict continues.

The politician vowed to punish “every b**tard’” who committed atrocities during the invasion of Ukraine and said the west is not doing enough to stop Putin in his tracks.

His message comes as the conflict continues well into its second week with the United Nations estimating that 1.3 million refugees have fled the country for safety.

The Independent has a proud history of campaigning for the rights of the most vulnerable, and we first ran our Refugees Welcome campaign during the war in Syria in 2015. Now, as we renew our campaign and launch this petition in the wake of the unfolding Ukrainian crisis, we are calling on the government to go further and faster to ensure help is delivered. To find out more about our Refugees Welcome campaign, click here. To sign the petition click here. If you would like to donate then please click here for our GoFundMe page.

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