WATCH: ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER'S VIDEO MESSAGE TO RUSSIANS ABOUT WAR - DETAILS!

Hollywood actor Arnold has made a request to President Putin as Russia goes to war against Ukraine.

Russia has been attacking Ukraine for more than two weeks. Thousands of soldiers from both countries have been killed. Meanwhile, representatives of the two countries are continuing talks on a ceasefire.

In the nine-minute video, which also shows footage of the destruction in Ukraine, the actor-turned-politician calls on people to see through disinformation and propaganda.

"I'm speaking to you today because there are things going on in the world that are being kept from you, terrible things that you should know about," he says.

"Ukraine did not start this war, neither did nationalists or Nazis," the former California governor says, noting that the country's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, is Jewish. "This is not the Russian people's war."

The Austrian-born former bodybuilding champion - whose film Red Heat was the first US film shot in Moscow's Red Square - speaks of his affection for the Russian people and talks about being inspired as a youth by Russian bodybuilder Yuri Vlasov.

He also talks about his father, who was among Nazi German troops who attacked St Petersburg - then called Leningrad - during World War Two. He returned a "broken man" full of pain from a wound he sustained during fighting and the guilt he felt at having taken part.

"The strength and the heart of the Russian people have always inspired me," he says. "That is why I hope that you will let me tell you the truth about the war in Ukraine."

He goes on to say: "This is an illegal war. Your lives, your limbs, your futures have been sacrificed for a senseless war condemned by the entire world."

I love the Russian people. That is why I have to tell you the truth. Please watch and share. pic.twitter.com/6gyVRhgpFV

- Arnold (Schwarzenegger) March 17, 2022