"Nothing was left there". The Russians destroyed Ukrainian cities and decided their fate
Some of the cities destroyed by Russia during the invasion of Ukraine will not be rebuilt. This information was revealed by the head of the Russian Ministry of Construction, Irek Fayzullin. This will happen to Popasnaya, which before the war was inhabited by about 20,000 people. "Nothing is left of it," Fayzullin declared.
Sep 29, 2023 | updated: 9:09 AM EDT, October 5, 2023
"Now, under these conditions, we may not be able to restore some cities. We have decided not to restore Popasna. Nothing is left there, we haven't done anything there yet," said Fayzullin, who was quoted by the government agency Ria Novosti. Popasna is a Ukrainian city that is occupied by Russia and incorporated into the unrecognized Luhansk People's Republic.
According to a representative of the Russian regime, "seven people live in Popasna". They do not want to leave their homes. Fayzullin added that in Sieverodonetsk, located in the Luhansk region, 115 billion rubles were allocated for reconstruction. But the work "is not really being carried out".
Russian occupiers used, among others, phosphorus bombs in Popasna. The use of this weapon in densely populated areas is prohibited by the Geneva Convention. It is considered to be one of the examples of Russian war crimes in Ukraine.
Ministry: there will be a reconstruction
However, the Ministry of Construction has issued a statement, in which it emphasized that in the liberated areas - as the Russians call the occupied territories of Ukraine - renovation is ongoing.
"Everywhere, in every liberated settlement, reconstruction is being organized" - the journal "Kommiersant" quotes a government dispatch.
In the federal budget project for 2024-2026, the state program "Renewal and socio-economic development of DRL, LRL, Zaporizhia, and Kherson regions" was taken into account. It is planned to spend 37.5 billion rubles on its implementation in 2024. However, no funds for this program are foreseen in 2025-2026.
