Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Russia has been continuously stealing Ukrainian grain. The American company Maxar Technologies has just published new satellite images that confirm that the invaders are also cutting down forests in the occupied areas.
The photos taken by Maxar Technologies were published by The Wall Street Journal. Referring to Ukrainian officials, journalists revealed that the Russian occupiers, while occupying Ukrainian lands, robbed not only grain, but also wood, cutting down forests.
The most frequently cut tree types were oaks, pines, hornbeams and aspens. The satellite photos shared online show how one of the forests in the Kherson region has changed over the course of a year.
The Russians used the felled trees both to strengthen their positions and for commercial purposes. The State Forestry Agency of Ukraine reported the detection of cases of illegal logging in the Kharkiv, Sumy and Kiev regions and in the south of the country.
Recently, Ukraine’s deputy defense minister, Hanna Malyar, reported that from the beginning of the occupation, Russian companies organized the felling of forests in Zaporozhye, Kherson and other temporarily occupied regions of Ukraine. According to her, the occupiers are cutting down forests in an uncontrolled and barbaric manner, which, if continued, will inevitably lead to catastrophic environmental consequences.