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Odesa, UKRAINE (LifeSiteNews) — Two weeks into its invasion of Ukraine, the Russian army moves toward the historic port city of Odesa, current headquarters of the Ukrainian navy.

Russian troops, which hold possession of the Crimean peninsula, are presently moving west toward Odesa, on the Black Sea. They have already taken the port city of Kherson and have arrived at Mykolaiv, just 75 miles east of Odesa. Russian naval vessels have also been spotted close to Ukrainian waters, raising the alarm of a possible attack by both land and sea.

Aljazeera reports that in preparation for an assault, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy removed last week the civilian governor of the Odesa province, Serhiy Hrynevetsky, replacing him with army Col. Maksym Marchenko, former leader of the Aidar battalion, which has fought in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region since 2014.

The Ukrainian army has set up defense positions all across the Odesa region, blocked all roads into the city, imposed a curfew, and stopped all commercial shipping into the port. The city has a population of one million. Evacuations are presently underway.

The defense of Odesa remains a key strategic necessity for Ukraine, if it wishes to maintain access to the Black Sea. According to Alexey Muraviev, associate professor of national security and strategic studies at Curtin University, “If Russia seizes Odesa, it will effectively cut off Ukraine from overseas trade and military aid.”

“The battle for Odesa would play one of the key roles in determining the future political outcome of the current conflict,” Muraviev told Aljazeera. “For Russia, the complete control of the Ukraine’s Black Sea and the Sea of Azov coasts may [be more important] than the seizure of Kharkiv or western Ukraine combined.”

The city of Odesa has particular cultural significance for Russia. It was founded by Russian Empress Catherine the Great in 1794. In addition to its strategic position on the northern shore of the Black Sea, Odesa is home not only to Russians and Ukrainians, but also to Armenian, Bulgarian, Greek, and Jewish communities. Adorned architecturally by Italian artists, the seaport stands as a symbol of ancient Russian imperial prestige and power.

The capture of Odesa would not only seriously affect Ukraine’s military access to the sea, but would also expose the countries of Moldova and Transnistria (which is officially part of Moldova) to possible Russian aggression. Both countries were part of the former Soviet Union.

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