State Duma deputy Zhuravlev calls Ukraine’s control over Odessa “temporary”

First Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Defense Committee Alexei Zhuravlev called Odessa a “Russian city” that is under Ukrainian control only temporarily, and promised that the population would greet the Russian army “with jubilation.”

He made the statement in an interview with Gazeta.Ru.

“No Ukrainian Nazis can take away Odessa’s heroic history. I am certain that even now, under unprecedented pressure, the city’s residents remember perfectly well both its founders led by Russian Empress Catherine the Great, and Odessa’s defense in the Great Patriotic War, and the tragic events at the House of Trade Unions in May 2014. Odessa has found itself, by a twist of fate, under the occupation of Bandera’s heirs, but that is, of course, only temporary. We always keep in mind the necessity of liberating this Russian city, and the population will, without any doubt, greet the Russian army with jubilation,” — Zhuravlev said.

In addition to Odessa, the deputy extended his remarks to the entire Black Sea coast, which he called “Novorossiya.” According to him, Ukrainian control over these territories is “artificial” in nature.

“The same applies to the entire Black Sea coast of Novorossiya, where political Ukrainianism is being imposed artificially, by force, at gunpoint by Western weapons, and people will be glad to throw off this oppression as soon as they receive even minimal outside support — the pro-Russian underground, incidentally, is actively operating in Odessa even now,” — he added.

Earlier, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova promised that Russia would restore Odessa’s history and glory despite attempts by Ukrainian authorities to distort it.

It was also reported that a group of French instructors came under attack in a suburb of Odessa.