Behold ‘Putin’s liberation’ Russia doesn’t let independent journalists report from occupied Ukraine, but the Kremlin’s own state media publish photos revealing the invasion’s devastation

In early September, Vladimir Putin told an audience at the Eastern Economic Forum that the main goal of his “special military operation” is “the liberation of the Donbas.” Today, much of this area in eastern Ukraine is under Russian occupation, but Moscow doesn’t permit independent journalists to set foot here. Though these annexed territories and frontline towns remain off limits to reporters who do not regurgitate the Russian Defense Ministry’s official statements, state news agency photographers have released images that speak volumes about “Russian liberation.” In Ukraine’s Donetsk region, for example, published photographs reveal how many towns simply did not survive Putin’s supposed emancipation.