https://video.echelon.pl/videos/watch/f6065c02-d06c-4cdf-98a8-e8747985d106 Mariupol was ravaged during Russia’s 2022 siege, with up to 90% of its residential buildings damaged or destroyed and thousands of people killed, leaving much of the city in ruins. Now, billions of rubles are being poured into what Russia calls “reconstruction,” with state-backed financing, subsidized mortgages, and favorable conditions creating a lucrative market for developers and Russian buyers, while many Ukrainians who lost their homes continue to fight for compensation they may never receive. As new apartment blocks rise and properties are increasingly marketed to newcomers from Russia, the construction boom is not only reshaping Mariupol physically, but also raising questions about who will live there in the future and how the city’s population is changing under Russian occupation. Eastern Express host Benjamin Lee is joined by Ilia Shumanov, a corruption investigator and activist, to examine who is profiting from Mariupol’s development, how state-linked buyers are being drawn to the housing market, and what this transformation means for Ukrainians who once called the city home. Chapters: 00:00 - Intro 00:06 - Russia's reconstruction boom in occupied Mariupol 01:02 - Developers profit from rebuilding the city 02:46 - How Mariupol was devastated in 2022 04:17 - State-backed construction projects in occupied Ukraine 06:58 - Who benefits from Mariupol's reconstruction? 09:21 - Why Russians are buying property in Mariupol 14:05 - Is the Kremlin cementing its claim to Mariupol? 16:54 - Can sanctions target reconstruction profiteers? 18:25 - Mariupol and Russia's strategy in occupied territories 20:59 - Eastern News Flash 🔴 Watch our 24/7 livestream - https://youtube.com/live/9RY46AUtIl4 Bringing you all the latest daily news and updates, TVP World is Poland's first English-language channel where you can find world news as seen from the Polish perspective and the latest news from the CEE region. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram. https://tvpworld.com/ https://www.facebook.com/tvpworldcom https://twitter.com/TVPWorld_com https://www.instagram.com/tvp_world/ https://www.threads.net/@tvp_world https://bsky.app/profile/tvpworld.bsky.social https://www.tiktok.com/@tvpworld.com https://t.me/tvp_world #Mariupol #Ukraine #Russia Mon, 21 Sep 2026 00:11:02 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://video.echelon.pl https://video.echelon.pl/client/assets/images/icons/icon-1500x1500.png https://video.echelon.pl/videos/watch/f6065c02-d06c-4cdf-98a8-e8747985d106 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://video.echelon.pl/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.