The head of the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, Anton Alikhanov, boasted that "637 enterprises are operating stably" in the occupied territories. Of these, nearly a third — 190 — have been restored in collaboration with Russian regions, which, according to the official, has allowed for the employment of over 13 thousand people.
These figures are presented by the Russians as a "great victory." In reality, this is an attempt to mask the deep economic degradation that they have brought to one of the most developed industrial regions of Ukraine.
Before 2014, there were over 2 thousand industrial enterprises operating in the Donetsk region alone. The region accounted for up to 20% of Ukraine's industrial production. Approximately 1900 more enterprises were located in the Luhansk region.
Thus, the current "Russian reconstruction" and the 13 thousand new jobs that the occupiers boast about are a pittance compared to pre-war scales. At the Azovstal plant alone, 11 thousand people were employed before the Russian invasion.
Behind the bright headlines lies a sad reality — Russia has destroyed the powerful industry of the region and is now trying to deceive the local population with propaganda about "economic development" and "prosperity."
Based on materials from the Center for Counteracting Disinformation