Donetsk residents now openly voicing hatred for Russians — official

Petro Andriushchenko, the head of the Center for the Study of Occupation, said this on Espreso TV.

“There may be problems with the heating season in parts of Donetsk region. The fuel crisis is growing — Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk regions, and occupied Crimea are at the top. In Donetsk, the situation is better because they have to ‘extinguish water with gasoline.’ That is, the occupiers cannot allow two major crises at once — one with water and one with fuel — for fear that society will erupt. However, prices are rising and gasoline is disappearing,” Andriushchenko said.

According to the head of the Center for Occupation Studies, the socio-economic situation in the occupied territories is indeed worsening, with no signs of improvement. Public sentiment, even among those who were previously ambivalent, is shifting in favor of Ukraine.

“For example, Ukrainian graffiti has started reappearing in Donetsk. People in Donetsk have openly begun writing and saying that they hate Russians. The Russians are getting what they deserve. In other words, people are turning their thoughts toward us, which will make the de-occupation of the territories easier,” Andriushchenko emphasized.

Why there is no water in the parts of Donetsk region controlled by Russian forces — main reasons

In a conversation with Putin, the leader of the DPR terrorists highlighted the following main reasons for the lack of water in the central water supply system of the occupied areas of Donetsk Oblast (ORDO):

1) 50% of the water came through the Siverskyi Donets-Donbas water pipeline, but it is currently out of service because, as Pushilin said, Ukraine “has imposed a water blockade”;

2) another 50% came from reserve reservoirs, which, as is well known, have dried up in the current year of 2025 due to the heat;

3) water supply networks that have not been repaired since the 1990s, which are deteriorating even further due to irregular use.

Pro‑Ukrainian journalist, investigator, and blogger Denys Kazanskyi — who moved from Donetsk to Kyiv in 2014 but continues to study and report on his native region — cites three reasons for the current poor water supply in the Donetsk-Makiivka agglomeration and Mariupol:

• Complete disregard by Moscow and local leaders appointed by the Kremlin for the basic needs of Donetsk residents—the occupiers are not involved in public utilities.
• Destruction as a result of hostilities of the Siverskyi Donets-Donetsk water pipeline, which passed through the sites of the fiercest battles in Bakhmut, Chasiv Yar, and Toretsk.
• The drying up of reservoirs, which the occupiers also do not monitor.