Moscow is turning occupied Ukrainian cities into military bases for further aggression. In Mariupol, captured in 2022, Russian forces have established two military bases at the Azovstal steel plant, according to Petro Andriushchenko, head of the Center for the Study of Occupation, UNIAN reports. 

According to Andriushchenko, one of the new bases was established in the last two months.

“This shows the level of militarization of Mariupol. Russian forces are relocating military assets mainly from Russia’s Rostov Oblast. Mariupol is no longer just a logistical crossroads. It is becoming a full-scale military logistics base,” he reveals. 

Andriushchenko says that each base at Azovstal originated from simple military checkpoints set up on the site.

He explains the location was chosen because it is hidden from outside surveillance, with no nearby residential buildings and difficult access due to fencing, making it safer for Russian troops.

“Let’s not forget that these bunkers and underground shelters once served to protect civilians and our Mariupol garrison. Now the Russians are repurposing them and succeeding in it,” Andriushchenko adds.

The Russian authorities do not care about the fate of the occupied cities or their residents. What matters to them is using these territories as staging grounds for continuing the war against Ukraine.

Nearly all Ukrainian cities under occupation are being turned into military footholds, logistical hubs, and bases for further aggression. At the same time, Russians forcibly conscript Ukrainians, often coercing them into fighting against their own country.

For example, in Crimea, people are leaving due to constant air raid sirens, explosions, and the overwhelming military presence, unable to endure the unrelenting stress and danger.

Russians in Crimea pack up as relentless sound of air alerts and sight of tanks become their new reality

Surveys show that Ukraine has fundamentally changed. Today, up to 90% of citizens in every region, including the south and east, support Euro-Atlantic integration, says Anton Hrushetskyi, Executive Director of the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS), UkrInform reports. 

After years of war with Russia, Ukrainian society has overcome longstanding geopolitical divisions.

“We have bridged the main divides. Issues that once split us, NATO, the EU, language, and attitudes toward Russia, now unite us,” the sociologist notes.

Key findings from KIIS:

• Support for NATO and the EU has surged to 80–90% across all regions
• There is a broad consensus that Russia is the aggressor
• Ukrainian remains the sole state language, though one-third still favor optional study of Russian

Researchers emphasize that this is not a fleeting trend but a lasting transformation rooted in 2022. However, they caution that “the work is far from complete,” as some politicians continue to exploit language issues for electoral advantage.

“Society is evolving — Russian is no longer part of our identity but is perceived as just another foreign language,” Hrushetskyi adds.

Earlier, a poll showed that a large majority of Ukrainians, 84%, believe there is no systematic discrimination or restriction of rights against Russian-speaking citizens in Ukraine. Among Russian-speaking Ukrainians themselves, 81% share this view.

The poll’s findings reject Russian propaganda that has systematically fabricated claims of discrimination against Russian speakers in Ukraine to justify its aggression.