class=”sc-3778e872-0 gWjAEa”>
The Kremlin and the Russian media play it up. War president Vladimir Putin (70) visited for the first time late on Saturday territory that the Russians conquered from Ukraine after the invasion a year ago.
Putin ventured into Mariupol, where the heaviest battles took place during the post-invasion siege. The fact that Putin set foot in the Donbass for the first time was also taken as a sign of the Kremlin chief’s contempt for the West. The International Criminal Court in The Hague issued an arrest warrant against Putin on Friday for war crimes. Putin then tried to be extra nonchalant.
In ‘his’ Mariupol, the Kremlin leader was demonstratively relaxed. He gets behind the wheel himself, with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin (56) as a passenger. The only problem is that the photos and videos that were only published many hours later and approved by the Kremlin do not show anyone on the street. There is an eerie silence in Mariupol.
Blurring of war crimes
Kremlin-approved footage shows Putin’s nocturnal journey through the devastated city. He also speaks to me people – selected people. Only where Putin stops do people wait for him, as if they have peace and normalcy.
There is no sign of any population as Putin rides past the devastation of Russian attacks – including the theater, the scene of a deadly bombing raid that reportedly killed at least 300 and possibly as many as 600 civilians.
Civilians had used the building as a refuge. The building collapsed when it was hit. Russia denied bombing it and blamed the Azov battalion. The Russians later completely demolished the building to cover up the traces of their atrocities, sources in Kiev said.
struggle for survival of those left behind
Putin also inspected a new building built by the Russians in a new part of the city with a dozen apartment buildings. The area looks like one of the monotonous test-tube towns built in Soviet times. A few extras are presented as local residents. “We now have a little piece of paradise,” Komsomolskaya Pravda was quoted as saying by a resident.
According to the UN, 90 percent of all residential buildings in Mariupol were damaged or destroyed during the Russian siege. There is “devastation all over the city,” Norwegian journalist Morten Risberg, who visited Mariupol in December, confirmed to the BBC.
Risberg spoke of “large-scale reconstruction and restoration work” by the Russians. “They change street names, repaint the Ukrainian colors with Russian ones and hang Russian flags everywhere.” The few people left in Mariupol “focused on survival”.
Source: Blick
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
