1 yr. ago • 95%

The Russians hunting for cheap flats in occupied Mariupol

www.bbc.co.uk The Russians hunting for cheap flats in occupied Mariupol

Largely destroyed by Russian forces, Mariupol is now portrayed by Moscow as a desirable city.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/1121444

Archived version: https://archive.ph/0P5uv
Archived version: https://web.archive.org/web/20230806100149/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-66393949

13 comments

Russia taking notes from the Israelis, I see.

30
It seems surprising that Russians would want to buy property in the occupation zone, with the war still ongoing. If Ukraine wins, no doubt their property rights will be declared null and they will be sent packing. Why take the risk? My only guess is that they must be so heavily propagandised as to not seriously contemplate the possibility of loss.

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- They basically have no clue what's happening as state media represents it as some sort of utopia with most modern buildings being newly rebuilt.
  
  20
  
  I reckon that after the war most buildings will be newly built.
  
  4
- It would also support the Russian propaganda machine when the Ukrainian people repossess their homes and throw the Russians out of homes that they have bought (from people who didn’t own them).
  
  9
- Part propaganda, part opportunist. If you can get property at a fraction of its normal price with the chance that it will be valuable in the future, it might be worth the gamble.
  
  6
- They're taking the risk because the price is a lot lower.
  
  People usually take on risks because of money, and many moving in may believe Russia is going to hold it and aren't counting the risk for much.
  
  Also, a poor person who has only seen morale-boosting news on TV could think the risk is low.
  
  5
- They’re told it’s Russian territory. They really don’t know that it’s only a temporary occupation.
  
  5
- Russians are still holidaying in Crimea. The propaganda is seriously strong on those that don't want to see through it.
  
  3
  
  True but that’s been occupied for a lot longer and is also farther away, so it would be easier to feel “secure” there for a propagandised Russian. But places like Mariupol on the other hand, where the war is so close and recent..
  
  1
- Don't undderestimate how fucked the housing market is. :)
  
  2
This is the best summary I could come up with:

There's been a steady stream of glowing reports on state TV portraying the reconstruction of Mariupol as proceeding at a "record-breaking" pace and life returning to normal.

Satellite images analysed by the BBC indeed show multiple high-rise estates appearing in existing neighbourhoods across the city over the past year, mostly near the outskirts.

These include an entire neighbourhood - with an area of about 315,000 sqm, according to satellite footage - in the city's east, another part of Mariupol badly hit by the fighting.

One woman whose block was demolished, Anna, told local pro-Russian TV station Mariupol 24 she was denied a replacement flat because she owns an 8 sqm shed in a village 40km outside the city.

Built by a private Russian construction company, its website creates the impression of a luxury development, and it will be sold on the free market to mortgage holders.

And if it recaptures the city, property rights given during occupation will likely be declared void, Oona Hathaway, a professor of law at Yale University, told the BBC.

I'm a bot and I'm open source!

16
Vultures.

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