The choke-point city that’s key to Putin’s sinister imperial plans

Russia has intensified attacks on Odesa, Ukraine’s most important port still under Kyiv’s control, as part of a campaign to disrupt maritime trade and weaken the wartime economy. The city also holds symbolic importance in Vladimir Putin’s vision of “Novorossiya,” or New Russia. Odesa has faced drone and missile strikes alongside what the analysis describes as a de facto blockade.