Putin urged not to resettle Mariupol residents far from their former homes

Residents of Mariupol in the Donetsk People's Republic (DNR) whose houses were damaged as a result of attacks by the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) should not be moved far away from their familiar neighborhoods. Russian President Vladimir Putin said this at a meeting with the head of the DNR, Denys Pushilin, on February 10.

The head of the DNR said that 64 houses with 4,789 apartments had been put into operation. He noted that another 71 objects are being prepared for commissioning.

"If you gave - and this is understandable - under construction for investors, and investors want to sell, to realize - it is understandable. But people who lived in this house, you can't move far away: they got used to the neighborhood, maybe used some social institutions nearby," - said the head of state.

Pushilin told the President that this issue remains in the center of attention of the authorities. In addition, he emphasized that in 2025, construction will also begin in the Donetsk-Makeev agglomeration.

Earlier, on December 27, 2024, the acting head of Mariupol Oleg Morgun announced the delivery of more than 1 thousand apartment buildings after major repairs in the city. According to him, the work in this direction will continue in 2025.

Prior to that, on December 20, Pushilin said that 27 Russian regions were helping to restore the DNR's infrastructure. According to him, they are assisting in the restoration of civil infrastructure, social facilities and residential houses.

On December 19, Putin urged the authorities of Mariupol to stop "holding on" to the existing 5,000 ownerless apartments and distribute them. According to him, people who have lost housing should have the right to get it in the same place where they lived, or next to it, if it is impossible in the former place. The head of state also said that in Mariupol about 1.7 thousand houses have been restored, not all of them have been handed over yet.

The special operation to protect Donbass, the beginning of which the Russian Federation announced on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision was taken against the backdrop of the worsening situation in the region.