The Wall Street Journal, using the example of Mariupol's "House with a Clock," reported how Russian authorities resell real estate in the occupied city to settlers from Russia, depriving former Ukrainian owners of the opportunity to return.
Construction firms linked to the Kremlin profit from redeveloping housing destroyed as a result of the Russian invasion and deemed "ownerless," after which they resell them to Russians, ignoring the rights of legal owners. Displaced Ukrainians face obstacles to return and prove their ownership or claim compensation.
Built in the 1950s, the house with a clock tower, 15 minutes from the sea, was one of the city's most prestigious homes. Shortly before the war began, the building was renovated, but in March 2022, it was heavily damaged by a missile strike (several residents died that day), although it was still restorable. Despite this, it was demolished, termed as "redevelopment." The site was handed over to a company associated with the Russian Ministry of Construction, and it was developed by "RKS-Development" under the management of former Tula Region Minister of Construction Konstantin Lopukhov.
Meanwhile, former apartment owners, despite a 2022 decree to provide apartments in this building, were offered to pay for new housing at prices three times higher than the compensation they received.
Additionally, one of the residents told WSJ that her mother, who owned an apartment in the House with a Clock but left for Germany after the occupation of Mariupol, decided to return, but was denied entry to Russia without explanation at the only Ukrainian checkpoint in Sheremetyevo.
According to Ukrainian authorities, 90% of apartment buildings and 60% of private homes in Mariupol were destroyed.
The strategy of replacing people who once lived in conquered territories with ethnic Russians is a strategy that Moscow has long adhered to, the publication notes, now financial interests have been added to this strategy.