Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, 2022, and Western officials initially expected the capital, Kiev, to fall quickly.
But 1,000 days later, Kiev and much of Ukraine still stands, despite Russian President Vladimir Putin’s goal to seize the capital and force the government and military of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to surrender. are.
Thanks to the spirit of its people and unprecedented support from the West, Ukraine did not collapse, but it lost nearly 20 percent of its territory and tens of thousands of its people, including soldiers and civilians. And Russia is still advancing, and the war is not over yet.
This page is updated with the latest maps and diagrams showing the military and humanitarian aspects of Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Latest situation
Ukraine on Tuesday used a long-range U.S.-made Atakum missile to attack Russia for the first time, officials said.
The Russian Ministry of Defense claimed that Russian air defense systems shot down five of six Atakum missiles over the Bryansk region, confirming the attack on the country’s territory.
Ukraine’s General Staff did not approve the use of Atakum, but claimed responsibility for the earlier attack on a Russian weapons depot using a drone.
The depot is located north of the Kursk region, where Russian forces are trying to eliminate Ukrainian forces that occupy about 600 square kilometers of Russian territory.
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The airstrike came a day after U.S. President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use Atakum missiles on Russia, in a major policy shift before President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January.
The move follows a recent barrage of attacks by Russia, with thousands of North Korean troops sent to support Russia.
Ukraine is in dire need of new weapons as its front lines collapse and Russian forces move into the battlefield faster than at any point since 2022.
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Invasion of Kursk
Ukraine invaded by surprise in August and captured part of Russia’s Kursk region. However, Ukrainian forces began losing territory in October after making steady advances in the area. The invasion was carried out at the expense of territory in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.
Russia has mobilized about 50,000 soldiers, including 10,000 from North Korea, in a new attempt to expel Ukrainians from Kursk, according to Zelensky and Ukrainian and Western intelligence officials.
Losing Kursk would deprive President Zelenskiy of a valuable bargaining chip in future negotiations with Russia.
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eastern front line
The invasion of the Kremlin has been a war of attrition, with both armies attacking from a maze of trenches and a front line stretching more than 1,000 kilometers from the southern Kherson region to Kharkov in the northeast.
Military officials, soldiers and analysts say the coming months will bring war to a halt as Ukraine seeks to stabilize its defense and shore up its position in the East in case President Trump forces it to negotiate with President Vladimir Putin. He says it will be an important phase.
Ukraine hopes to slow Russian attack and seize the initiative before Trump takes office, senior officials say proving their country is a “warrior” and “winner” will support the next president I believe it will be helpful in persuading you to do so.
But Ukrainian officials admit they are struggling to contain Russia’s large and well-equipped military amid manpower shortages, and unrestricted military service has hampered efforts to attract new recruits. However, there are plans to recruit additional troops.
Putin said he was only interested in negotiations if Russia accepted all of his demands, including extending the Russian occupation to all four regions of Ukraine.
With momentum on Russia’s side and retreat on Ukraine’s side, the Kremlin now has little reason to entertain peace talks.
Since August, Russia has occupied more than 1,200 square kilometers of Ukraine, according to Deep State, a Ukrainian war tracking group close to the Defense Ministry. This is twice the territory Kiev forces currently hold in the Kursk region.
Attacks on infrastructure
Russia fired about 120 missiles and 90 drones into Ukraine on Sunday, in one of the largest airstrikes of the war, targeting power facilities across the country and causing severe damage, the first since the summer. This led to an emergency power outage.
Zelenskiy said Ukrainian air defenses, including anti-aircraft missiles, mobile fire units, electronic warfare groups and Western-supplied F-16 fighter jets, shot down more than 140 planes. However, power remained out in several parts of the country as emergency teams worked to restore services.
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Both Russia and Ukraine use unmanned aerial vehicles as part of their military strategies, and drones play an important role in the war.
Ukraine has used drones in attacks inside Russia this year, including on the outskirts of Moscow, with the aim of thwarting the Kremlin’s war effort and shifting the conflict back to ordinary Russians.
In 2023, Ukraine used drones to attack Russian military facilities, munitions factories, and energy infrastructure, sinking an estimated one-fifth of Russia’s Black Sea fleet.
Russian minefields and fortifications, coupled with constant drone surveillance and artillery bombardment, proved insurmountable for the long-awaited Ukrainian counterattack in summer 2023.
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Civil and cultural impact
The number of Ukrainians fleeing the war makes it one of the largest refugee crises in modern history.
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Financial Times investigation finds Ukrainian children abducted and taken to Russia in the early months of the 2022 Kremlin invasion were adopted by authorities under false Russian identities. This was confirmed in one case.
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The war damaged or destroyed thousands of cultural, medical, and educational facilities across Ukraine.
Ruins in Ukraine destroyed or damaged by Russia
Kyiv’s Ofmadyt Children’s Hospital was damaged by a Russian missile attack in July ©Image: Alexander Yermochenko / Data source: Ministry of Culture and Health of Ukraine
1,062
cultural heritage
3,798
educational facilities
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine
On February 24, 2022, the world woke up to the news that Russian missiles had hit targets across Ukraine and used tanks to breach the border.
The invasion came after months of rare public warnings from Western intelligence agencies. It would quickly escalate into Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II.
Ukrainians refer to the past decade as the “Great War” since Russia first invaded their country in February 2014 and its uninsigned troops began occupying the Crimean peninsula. A few months later, they will flow into the Donbass region and foment war under the guise of a separatist uprising.
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March 2022: Russia fails to occupy Kyiv
Russia’s attempt to take Ukraine’s capital was thwarted by a combination of factors, including geography, attacker blunders, modern weaponry, as well as Ukraine’s rapid grassroots mobilization efforts and ingenuity such as smartphones and scraps of foam mats. It was done.
May 2023: Battle of Bahmut
President Putin hailed the first major victory since the early days of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in May 2023. After nine months of harsh battles, their own forces occupied Bahmut, which was left in ruins.
Many of the estimated 30,000 people killed were prisoners recruited by the Wagner Group, led by Evgeny Prigozhin, who rebelled against Moscow a month later and died in a plane crash in August 2023. did.
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Other important events in the war
August 6, 2024
Russian government claims Ukraine launched attack inside Russia
May 17, 2024
Ukraine announces Russia has advanced 10km towards Kharkov
April 20, 2024
US lawmakers approve aid to Ukraine and Israel after months of delay
July 17, 2023
Russia withdraws from Black Sea grain agreement
June 25, 2023
“Get out of my way”: How Prigozhin’s march on Moscow failed
June 6, 2023
Floods hit Ukraine after Kakhovka Dam collapses
May 21, 2023
Putin insists on occupying Bakhmut as Ukraine insists fighting is ‘not over’
May 5, 2023
Military briefing: Drone attack on the Kremlin
November 11, 2022
Ukrainian forces retake Kherson after Russian withdrawal
October 8, 2022
Bridge in Crimea, Russia destroyed by explosion
September 10, 2022
Ukraine’s lightning attack pushes Russia back 70km in a week
April 15, 2022
Russia announces warship Moscow sunk in Black Sea
Developed by Martin Stabe, Alan Smith, Emma Lewis, Joanna S Kao, Sam Learner, Ændra Rininsland
