Mariupol has become a symbol of the cruelty of Russian warfare in Ukraine. Putin’s troops are not shooting at apartment buildings, hospitals, markets and shelters by accident. Since it became clear to him that the Ukrainian population is supporting the military resistance, he has been attacking more and more civilian targets in the contested areas. With pure terror he wants to force the Ukrainians to give up. Kharkiv, Sumy, Chernihiv, Kyiv and many other Ukrainian cities experience this every day. Using the example of the encircled Mariupol, the Russian ruler shows them that worse things are in store for them if his troops continue to advance.
Moscow’s threats to the “nationalists” in Mariupol also show that an end to the fighting would not end the terror. The many people who were active in politics and civil society or otherwise publicly identified themselves as supporters of an independent Ukraine must brace themselves for the worst after a Russian victory. And it is to be feared that the occupiers’ actions will become all the more brutal the more resistance they have encountered beforehand.
Vladimir Putin and his accomplices should be brought to justice for the war crimes committed in Mariupol alone. Unfortunately, the chances of that ever happening are very slim. Because it is still the case that anyone who wants to end the bloodshed cannot avoid talks with the Russian ruler. But the more brutal Russia’s warfare becomes, the more pressing the question of how useful it is to talk to this leadership in the Kremlin. The West and Ukraine should, of course, still try. But the language Putin understands best is military defense. In it lies the greatest opportunity to put his reign of terror in its place. For this, Ukraine needs more support from the West than before.