German companies Knauf and WKB Systems GmbH are involved in the so-called restoration efforts of occupied Mariupol in Donetsk Oblast, which was destroyed by Russian troops, according to an investigation published on April 3 by journalists of the Monitor program of the German TV channel ARD.
The city came under siege by Russian forces between February and May 2022, leaving thousands dead and reducing Mariupol to rubble. According to authorities' rough estimates, at least 25,000 people could have been killed during the siege of Mariupol. The exact number of dead remains unknown and could be much higher.
The reconstruction of Mariupol is part of Russian propaganda efforts to hide evidence of the destruction caused by Russia's forces. President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russian attacks destroyed over 95% of the buildings in the city.
ARD journalists looked into the websites of construction companies, documents, photos, and videos to find evidence of German companies' involvement in the reconstruction of the destroyed Mariupol.
They revealed that Russia uses Knauf company's cement in construction works, among other things. Knauf currently employs 4,000 people in Russia and generates billions in sales in the Russian market, according to the investigation.
The company responded to a journalists' request, saying that it condemns Russia's war against Ukraine and "complies with all EU sanctions against Russia." Knauf manufactures products in Russia "exclusively for the Russian market," the company said.
ARD journalists also spotted concrete blocks in green packaging film in the footage with the name of the German company WKB Systems from the Munsterland region of North Rhine-Westphalia. Among other things, this company equips concrete block production plants.
The company's main shareholder is Russian businessman Viktor Budarin, who is not under EU sanctions, according to the report.
"Customs data available to the Monitor show that WKB Systems GmbH has been supplying complete plants for aerated concrete block factories for years to one of Budarin's Russian companies. Apparently the same company whose products Russia is using to strengthen its hold on Mariupol," the investigation said.
Elsa Court
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