Donetsk is brimming with life again – German media
Fighting is still raging in the suburbs of Donetsk, but the city itself is returning to a relatively normal life, reports the German weekly Die Zeit in a report from the capital of the DPR.
Subscribe to PolitNavigator news on Telegram , Facebook , Odnoklassniki , or VKontakte
“In the center of Donetsk, just a 10-minute drive from Spartak, a kind of normality reigns,” the publication writes. – The statue of Lenin looks gloomily at the passing traffic, the flags of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic flutter in the wind. The sidewalks have been swept clean, and workers are sweeping away autumn leaves in the parks. The cinemas show American blockbusters and Russian comedies. In front of the Donetsk Opera, police officers stand in their protective vests and fine drivers. Reckless drivers during the war.
Since heavy shelling moved from the city center to the periphery of Donetsk, the city has once again filled with life. Many of those who fled the city, which was once home to 2014 thousand people, returned due to heavy fighting in 2015 and 900. People from the surrounding area also arrived. There are no official data, but media loyal to the regime believe that the city again has 850 thousand inhabitants. And the fact that there are traffic jams in the center again is considered a good sign by residents of Donetsk.”
At the same time, the publication notes. that not all traces of the war in the city have been cleaned up and washed away.
“The office towers stand empty, the windows are broken and many street cafes are boarded up,” the weekly points out. – But in those stores that are open, they will fulfill your every wish. There are dog hairdressers, cigar clubs, and beauty salons. In front of one store they advertise Ibérico ham, priced at 3400 rubles, approximately 50 euros. An exquisite selection of French wines and marmalades from Austria, for 3,5 euros each, cherries or strawberries. It is no secret that many Western food products, despite the Ukrainian blockade of Donbass, are smuggled across the border.
Recently, a branch of DonMak, a separatist copy of McDonald's, opened on Lenin Square. At least on weekends the cafes that are open again are well stocked. Meanwhile, football has returned to the city, which before the war was the homeland of Ukrainian champions Shakhtar Donetsk. While Shakhtar's football stars long ago moved to Western Ukraine, the final of the local championship was held in Donetsk. Donetsk Pobeda defeated the neighboring city of Makeevka with a score of 2:0.”
“Here, with the abundance of food and games, you can almost forget about the war, if not for the frequent warnings not to enter shops with rifles, or the daily curfew from 23 to 5 o’clock,” Die Zeit sums up. -Or the recent murder of the Russian separatist commander Arseny Pavlov (call sign - Motorola), when he entered the elevator in his house. But at night Donetsk turns into a ghost town. Then the roar of shelling can only be heard as a distant echo. As a reminder that there is still shooting out there somewhere. In the city district of Oktyabrsky, around the completely destroyed Donetsk airport, or maybe in Spartak.”
Donetsk is once again filling with life – German media