Mariinka has been used by Ukraine as a defensive barrier since 2014, when Russia-backed fighters seized large swathes of the eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions. President Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has said his troops have seized the key town of Mariinka in eastern Ukraine – a claim immediately denied by Kyiv. Mariinka seen as a gateway to Donetsk – has been almost completely destroyed. The claims by both Russia and Ukraine have not been independently verified. Is Kyiv in denial of the capture of Mariinka ?

