JRL NEWSWATCH: “Locals ‘apprehensive’ in Moscow-run Ukraine region” – AFP

“In Ukraine’s only region fully controlled by Russian troops, Moscow-backed officials are pushing for formal annexation while those still living there say they are apprehensive …. Russian forces swiftly moved in from neighbouring Crimea … in early March. … [when] Ukrainian troops were focused on defending … Kyiv. … By taking control of Kherson and partially occupying the neighbouring region of Zaporizhzhia, the Kremlin seeks to create a strategic land bridge, linking Russian-controlled territory to Crimea. … Ukrainian authorities estimate … 45 percent of the city’s 300,000 inhabitants have fled, along with 20 percent of the population of the surrounding region, previously about one million …. In the city’s streets … AFP … saw … more than half … the shops and cafes … closed. …”

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