the russian president Vladimir Putin visited the occupied city of Mariupolbeing the first trip to Ukrainian territory after, illegally, Moscow will be annexed in September. However, Ukraine stood out as an act of “cynicism” to the tour and denounced that it was carried out at night as “a thief”.
Putin traveled on Saturday to crimeaa short distance southwest of Mariupol, in order to celebrate the 9th anniversary of the annexation of the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula to Russia.
Since the beginning of the conflict, Mariupol has become the international symbol of defiance, when ukrainian forces Outnumbered and outgunned, they resisted the arrival of Russian troops for three months, until the neighboring country finally took over. control of the steel plant last may.
Putin’s visit, where he can be seen chatting with the neighbors, going to a children’s center and an art school in Crimea, has been taken as a challenge by the Russian president; after the willingness of the International Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant against youeven though he had not commented on the order, aggravating his international isolation and that it is likely that he could face trial in the near future.
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It is also carried out before the visit to Moscow of the Chinese President Xi Jinpingdiplomatic boost for Putin in his confrontation with the West.
According to local media and news agencies, the Russian president arrived in Mariupol in helicopter and afterwards he drove a car in which he toured the “monumental places” from the city; the media rossiya24 posted image of putin chatting with locals, before what seemed like a newly built residential complex and other apartments.
Also, you can see Valery Gerasimov, Moscow’s top official in charge of the war, receive Putin and lead him to a room where more public servants were waiting for him. The Russian president met with military commands and troops in Rostov-on-Dona southern Russian city about 180 kilometers further east.
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Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesmantold the press that the trip had not been announced in advance and intended to “inspect the work of the (command) post in its ordinary operating mode.”
On the other hand, Ukraine denounced the visit as “cynicism”added to the fact that it was carried out during the evening as a “thief”.
“The criminal always returns to the scene of the crime (…) the murderer of thousands of families from Mariupol came to admire the ruins of the city and (their) graves. Cynicism and lack of remorse.” wrote in Twitter adviser to the ukrainian presidency Mikhailo Podoliak.
Added to that the Ministry of Defense in Ukraine affirmed on the social network Twitter that the Russian president visited Mariupol “like a thief”under the cover of night. “First of all, it is safer. In addition, the darkness allows him to highlight what he wants to show, and he keeps the city that his army completely destroyed and its few surviving inhabitants away from prying eyes ”he declared.
Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014a decision that most of the world dismissed as illegal, and last September officially declared as russian territory four regions in the south and the this Ukraine, after referendums that Kyiv and West they crossed out farce.
