A representative of the Ministry of infrastructure of Ukraine, Olena Shulyak, said that the scale of ruination that the Russian army brought to some towns and cities of Ukraine is so enormous that they cannot be restored. This painful issue especially affects the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which have been under occupation since 2014. Donetsk region: only ruins remain from Bakhmut, Volnovakha, Vuhledar, Maryinka, Lyman, Soledar and, of course, Mariupol. In the Luhansk region, these are Severodonetsk, Popasne, Rubizhne, Shchastya (the name of this town translates as "happiness". What an irony), Kreminna.
Donetsk and Luhansk are industrial regions of Ukraine, and many of the towns here were built around mines and heavy industries. Therefore, the recovery of some of them will depend on whether Ukraine can restart these enterprises. In addition, the longer the settlement was under occupation, the less likely people would return there after the end of the war.
At the same time, Shulyak emphasises that the "iconic cities" that have become national symbols of Ukrainian resilience will be restored no matter what. For example, Bakhmut. Examples of such towns in the Kyiv region are Bucha and Irpin: they were destroyed by the occupiers, but now all that remains from that dark period are bullets in fences and wounds in hearts.
The restoration of the south of Ukraine will develop much faster since the south is the agricultural area of Ukraine. And if Azovstal in Mariupol turned into a pile of metal, the gardens in Melitopol continue to bear fruits.
