Europe | Russian ruins

Kremlin-occupied Ukraine is now a totalitarian hell

The Trump administration should remember Vladimir Putin’s dark vision

A view shows multi-storey residential buildings destroyed in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict in the town of Severodonetsk in the Luhansk region
Photograph: Reuters
|KYIV

ON GOOGLE STREET VIEW it is possible to “drive” around parts of towns that have been occupied by Russia in Ukraine since its invasion in February 2022. To do so is to drive back in time. The images were taken before the assault. Since then, many buildings have been destroyed, some streets have new names and the clocks have changed. The area runs on Moscow time, an hour ahead of the rest of Ukraine.

Explore more

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Russian ruins”

From the November 16th 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition

Discover more

Marine Le Pen (L) arrives at the Paris criminal courthouse for her trial on suspicion of embezzlement of European public funds

Marine Le Pen spooks the bond markets

She threatens to bring down the French government, but also faces a possible ban from politics

Donald Trump shakes hands with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte as they meet in Palm Beach, Florida, United States, November 22nd 2024

The maths of Europe’s military black hole 

It needs to spend to defend, but voters may balk


Ukraine’s warriors brace for a Kremlin surge in the south 

Vladimir Putin’s war machine is pushing harder and crushing Ukrainian morale


Vladimir Putin fires a new missile to amplify his nuclear threats

The attack on Ukraine is part of a new era of missile warfare

Once dominant, Germany is now desperate

As an election looms its business model is breaking down