Despite obvious lies of Putin and Lavrov Russian troops openly fight with Ukrainian army in the new offensive. Heavy fighting occurs on the whole front line. This is happening while Europe is divided on the issue. Poland and Lithuania want to give arms to Ukraine, while Germany's Merkel is against. Poland doesn't want to go alone on the issue. They want more support from EU and NATO members.
It appears that Russia wants to take the city of Mariupol which holds the keys to communication lines to Crimea. Taking the city would give Russia direct access to Crimea without the need to build a very expensive bridge from Russia. It would also give them upper hand over Ukraine militarily and economically.
#Russia #Ukraine #Putin
