"Irina Artyomova, 42, lives in Kramatorsk, in the eastern Ukrainian province of Donetsk, about 12 miles from the front lines. Her reflection is simple but powerful. What would you think if a neighbor came to your house and said it was his, not yours? she asks in a phone call. Would you give up? Artyomova, along with her husband, Roman Dubinin, also 42, runs the aquarium in this Ukrainian city, a small oasis for civilians and military personnel battered by the Russian siege."
"Kramatorsk is one of the Kremlin's coveted keys to bolster Russian control over Donbas, the region comprised of the Donetsk and Luhansk provinces and located at the heart of the New Russia desired by Vladimir Putin. The Russian president made this clear to his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, at the recent bilateral summit held in Alaska. The Russian leader's dream with deep historical and economic roots has clear consequences for the conflict and defense of Ukraine."
"According to the well-documented account of the meeting between Putin and Trump on August 15 in Alaska, the Russian president would be willing to freeze the front line if the Ukrainian government of Volodymyr Zelenskiy hands over Donbas to him. We are against it, Artyomova continues in a new message. We don't want to live under Russian control. We dream of victory and life in a free Ukraine."
Irina Artyomova and her husband run a small aquarium in Kramatorsk, a city about 12 miles from the front lines in Donetsk province. Kramatorsk faces heavy pressure as a strategic objective in Russia's effort to control Donbas. Russian forces and pro-Russian separatists have occupied large parts of Donbas since 2014 and significantly expanded control after the 2022 invasion; Kyiv now controls about 30% of Donetsk while Russia occupies almost all of Luhansk. Of the six million residents in 2022, about half remain. Putin frames Donbas as part of a historical 'New Russia' claim and has discussed freezing front lines in exchange for Ukrainian concessions.
Read at english.elpais.com
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