Rosgvardia officer in liberated MelitopolMELITOPOL, Apr 10The demand for rubles is growing in Melitopol, which has come under Russian control, at some gas stations it is already possible to pay with the Russian ruble, RIA Novosti correspondent reports. The city of Melitopol has been under the control of the Russian army since February 24. and sell for 78 rubles. «I want to thank the military-civilian administration of Russia for the efficient supply of fuel. Now we trade in rubles and hryvnias. We have everything. Come, refuel,» an employee of the Melitopol gas station told RIA Novosti. In turn, the administrator of one of exchange offices of the city told RIA Novosti that the demand for rubles has been increasing in recent days. «The demand for rubles has increased. Entrepreneurs go to the Crimea for goods and bring them here. So far, the hryvnia is mostly used. But, most likely, this is temporary. Not all at once «, — said the interlocutor of the agency. He recalled that until 2014 Melitopol had developed trade relations with the Crimea, and today these contacts are actively restored pour in. Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24th. President Vladimir Putin called its goal «the protection of people who have been subjected to abuse, genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years.» The Armed Forces of Melitopol formed a Cossack squad. For this, according to him, it is planned to carry out «demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine», to bring to justice all war criminals responsible for «bloody crimes against civilians» in Donbass. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the Armed Forces strike only at military infrastructure and Ukrainian troops and, on March 25, they completed the main tasks of the first stage — they significantly reduced the combat potential of Ukraine. The main goal in the Russian military department was called the liberation of Donbass.
