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As Russian troops stationed in northern and eastern Ukraine face difficulties in capturing Kiev and other strategic points, their advance south seems to be more successful.
Russia sees the south as key to the success of the occupation, and has taken over the Zaporizhia power plant, which is the largest in Europe.
The operation in the south started from Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in 2014, and where it has established its large military presence.
Russian troops are moving into Ukraine from Crimea, spreading east to Mariupol and west to Odessa, threatening to cut off Ukraine’s naval entry.
If Mariupol falls, it would give Russia control of one of Ukraine’s largest ports and create a land corridor between Crimea and the Russian-backed regions of Luhansk and Donetsk.
Connecting Crimea with mainland Russia through rebel-held areas would make it much easier for Russia to move goods and people to and from Crimea. Russia has been demanding this since 2014, when the conflict in the east began.
Currently the peninsula is connected to the Russian continent only through a single bridge, built at great expense after Russian annexation.
The Russian military has also occupied the town of Kherson, which lies where the Dnieper River meets the Black Sea, an important site for troops to move further into Ukraine.
If Russia is able to move further west, to Odessa and beyond, it will not only cut off Ukraine’s entry into the sea, but also encircle the country on three sides.
In 2014, after the annexation of Crimea, Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed that although Russia lost the territory of Novorossiya for various reasons, its people remained there.
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