Mariupol, thanks to its nature and location, has several important characteristics.
Firstly, it blocks a land corridor between Crimea and Donbass. Russian forces had burst out of the Crimean peninsula, and are trying to link up with Russian and separatist forces in Donbass. But in order to complete the land bridge, Russians need to take Mariupol.
Second, siezing Mariupol would put Russia in control of over 80% of Ukraine’s Black Sea coastline. Mariupol itself is the largest port in the Azov Sea region. Capture of Mariupol would cause cutting off its maritime trade and making it even more difficult for Ukraine to be supplied with weapons.
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