Does Russia want to annex southern Ukraine?

In Melitopol, Russification is underway. This city in southern Ukraine was taken in the first days of the Russian offensive. The Russian flag flies there. But the process of rapprochement with Moscow is not only symbolic, reports Luc Lacroix, special envoy on the spot. During ceremonies organized under the portrait of Vladimir Putin, dozens of Russian passports are granted every day. Some residents ask for it out of conviction, others out of necessity, in order to be able to work or receive a pension.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday that the geographical objectives of the Russian military operation are not limited to Donbass alone but also include southern Ukraine, further reinforcing the feeling that Russia is preparing the ground for a annexation.

Production in the region has also been reoriented. Tractor or car parts produced in a revived factory are now sent to Russia or Belarus, instead of Poland or Germany. Wheat from this important agricultural region is bought by Russian intermediaries before being sold around the world. Although Moscow has not expressly demanded the integration of Melitopol into Russia, it seems to be doing everything to make the process inevitable.