With Russia declaring diplomacy at a dead end, a suburb just kilometers from the front lines in Ukraine would be among the first to know should Russia¡¯s President Vladimir Putin decide to invade. The people here would be less ambivalent about which side to pick than the last time they came under attack, seven years ago.
Putin¡¯s Russia isn¡¯t admired in the city of Mariupol in the way it once was. When people imagine the future they might have under his rule, they no longer see a wealthier, more comfortable one in Russia, 48 kilometers away.
Today many compare their lives instead to the territory that lies between, held by Kremlin-backed separatists since an unsteady ceasefire stopped their approach to the city. They don¡¯t like what they see. Crime rates are high, the economy is crippled and living standards are even lower than on the Ukrainian side of the so-called line of contact.
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