War in Ukraine

Extracted Attributes

• Refugees

  6,000,000 to 7,000,000 people

• Civilian Casualties

  Tens of thousands

• Military Casualties

  Hundreds of thousands

• Conflict Origin Date

  2014-02-20

• Direct Cost to Russia

  Over US$450,000,000,000

• Full-scale Invasion Date

  2022-02-24

• Internally Displaced Persons

  8,000,000 people

• Territory Occupied by Russia

  Approximately 20% of Ukraine (as of 2025-12-01)

Timeline

• Initial conflict begins with Russian intervention in Crimea and the Donbas region. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2014-02-20

• Russia launches a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, termed a "special military operation" by Vladimir Putin. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2022-02-24

• Russian forces withdraw from northern Ukraine and Kyiv; the Bucha massacre is subsequently uncovered. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2022-04-01

• Russian forces capture the city of Mariupol after a destructive months-long siege. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2022-05-20

• Russia illegally annexes four partially occupied Ukrainian provinces: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2022-09-30

• Ukrainian forces liberate the city of Kherson and territory west of the Dnipro river. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2022-11-11

• The International Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2023-03-17

• Ukraine launches a cross-border offensive into Russia's Kursk Oblast. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2024-08-06

• Russia deploys the Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile for the first time in a strike on Dnipro. (Source: BBC News)

  2025-11-21

• A Russian missile attack on Kharkiv kills two people, including a child. (Source: BBC News)

  2026-01-03

Russo-Ukrainian war (2022–present)

On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II. It is a major escalation of the war between the two countries that began when Russia attacked Ukraine in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thousands of military casualties and tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilian casualties. As of December 2025, Russian troops occupy almost 20% of Ukraine. From a population of 41 million, about 8 million Ukrainians have been internally displaced and 6–7 million have fled the country, creating Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. In late 2021, Russia massed troops near Ukraine's borders and issued demands to the West, including a ban on Ukraine ever joining NATO. After repeatedly denying having plans to attack Ukraine, on 24 February 2022, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation", saying that it was to support the Russian-backed breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, whose paramilitary forces had been fighting Ukraine in the Donbas War since 2014. Putin espoused irredentist and imperialist views challenging Ukraine's legitimacy as a state, baselessly claimed that the Ukrainian government were neo-Nazis committing genocide against the Russian minority in the Donbas, and said that Russia's goal was to "demilitarise and denazify" Ukraine. Russian air strikes and a ground invasion were launched on a northern front from Belarus towards the capital Kyiv, a southern front from occupied Crimea, and an eastern front from the Donbas towards Kharkiv. Ukraine enacted martial law, ordered a general mobilisation, and severed diplomatic relations with Russia. Russian troops retreated from the north and the outskirts of Kyiv by April 2022, after encountering stiff resistance and logistical challenges. The Bucha massacre was uncovered after their withdrawal. Russia launched an offensive in the Donbas and captured Mariupol after a destructive siege. Russia continued to bomb military and civilian targets far from the front, and struck Ukraine's energy grid during winter months. In late 2022, Ukraine launched successful counteroffensives in the south and east, liberating most of Kharkiv Oblast. Soon after, Russia illegally annexed four partly-occupied provinces. In November, Ukraine liberated the city of Kherson and all land west of the Dnipro river. After small but steady Russian advances in the east in the first half of 2024, Ukraine launched a cross-border offensive into Russia's Kursk Oblast in August, where North Korean soldiers were sent to help Russia. The United Nations Human Rights Office reports that Russia is committing severe human rights violations in occupied Ukraine. Russian attacks on civilians and policies in occupied territories have led to allegations of genocide. The direct cost of the war for Russia has been over US$450 billion. The Russian invasion was met with international condemnation. The UN General Assembly passed a resolution condemning the invasion and demanding a full Russian withdrawal. The International Court of Justice ordered Russia to halt military operations, and the Council of Europe expelled Russia. Many countries imposed sanctions on Russia and its ally Belarus while providing large-scale humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine. Protests occurred around the world, with anti-war protesters in Russia being met by mass arrests and greater media censorship. War-related disruption to Ukrainian agriculture and shipping worsened the world food crisis; war-related environmental damage was described as ecocide. The International Criminal Court (ICC) opened an investigation into crimes against humanity, war crimes, abduction of Ukrainian children, and genocide against Ukrainians. The ICC issued arrest warrants for Putin and five other Russian officials. Peace negotiations have stalled, and Russia has repeatedly refused calls for a ceasefire.

Web Search Results

• The Causes and Consequences of the Ukraine War - CIRSD

  Home Horizons The Causes and Consequences of the Ukraine War # The Causes and Consequences of the Ukraine War John J. Mearsheimer is R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago. This lecture was delivered at the Robert Schuman Centre of the European University Institute in Florence, Italy on June 16th, 2022. Its written version is published with permission. The war in Ukraine is a multidimensional disaster, which is likely to get much worse in the foreseeable future. When a war is successful, little attention is paid to its causes, but when the outcome is disastrous, understanding how it happened becomes paramount. People want to know: how did we get into this terrible situation? [...] Let me now turn to the matter of escalation. It is widely accepted among international relations scholars that there is a powerful tendency for protracted wars to escalate. Other countries can get dragged into the fight and the level of violence is likely to escalate. The potential for this happening in the Ukraine war is real. There is a danger that the United States and its NATO allies will get dragged into the fighting, which they have been able to avoid up to this point, even though we are now effectively at war with Russia. There is also the possibility that nuclear weapons might be used in Ukraine and that might even lead to a nuclear exchange between Russia and the United States. The underlying reason these outcomes might be realized is that the stakes are so high for both sides, [...] This war is an unmitigated disaster for Ukraine. As I noted earlier, Putin made it clear in 2008 that Russia would wreck Ukraine to prevent it from joining NATO. He is delivering on that promise. Russian forces have conquered at least 20 percent of Ukrainian territory and destroyed or badly damaged many Ukrainian cities and towns. More than 6.5 million Ukrainians have fled the country, while more than 8 million have been internally displaced. Many thousands of Ukrainians—including innocent civilians—are dead or badly wounded and the Ukrainian economy is in shambles. The World Bank estimates that Ukraine’s economy will shrink by almost 50 percent over the course of 2022. Estimates are that approximately $100 billion worth of damage has been inflicted on Ukraine and that it will take close

• War in Ukraine | News and Insights from Foreign Affairs

  Skip to content ### Topic # War in Ukraine Explore Foreign Affairs’ coverage of the war in Ukraine, from the Russian invasion in February 2022 to Kyiv’s military response, the international community’s diplomatic and economic measures, and the backstory of Russian-Ukrainian relations. Subscribe to Topic Feed Related Regions & Topics Volodymyr Zelensky Ukraine Vladimir Putin Russia Donald Trump Administration Joe Biden Administration War & Military Strategy Geopolitics Defense & Military Security ## The Weakness of the Strongmen Stephen Kotkin ## America’s Drone Delusion Justin Bronk Essay ## How Europe Lost Matthias Matthijs, Nathalie Tocci Essay ## The Time to End the War in Ukraine Is Now Thomas Graham Essay ## America’s Magical Thinking About Ukraine [...] Sophia Besch, Richard Youngs Snapshot ## Trump, Ukraine, and the Limits of Presidential Peacemaking Timothy Naftali Snapshot ## Planning for a Post-American Future in Ukraine Jack Watling ## What If America Abandons Ukraine? Liana Fix, Michael Kimmage Snapshot ## Democracy and War: Politics and Identity in a Time of Global Threats Andrew Moravcsik Capsule Review ## Ransom War: How Cyber Crime Became a Threat to National Security Lawrence D. Freedman Capsule Review ## Who Will Defend Europe? An Awakened Russia and a Sleeping Continent Andrew Moravcsik Capsule Review ## By the Second Spring: Seven Lives and One Year of the War in Ukraine Lawrence D. Freedman Capsule Review ## Goodbye to Russia: A Personal Reckoning From the Ruins of War Maria Lipman Capsule Review [...] Snapshot ## What Does Trump See in Putin? Fiona Hill ## Would a Peace Deal in Ukraine Last? G. John Ikenberry, Harold James Snapshot ## A Plan for Peace Through Strength in Ukraine Stephen Hadley, Daniel Fried, Franklin D. Kramer Snapshot ## When Nuclear Weapons Fail to Deter Paul Avey Snapshot ## Ukraine Without America Andriy Zagorodnyuk Snapshot ## Europe’s Moment of Truth Wolfgang Ischinger Snapshot ## How Not to End the War in Ukraine Tetiana Kyselova, Yuna Potomkina Snapshot ## Where Does Ukraine Go From Here? Nataliya Gumenyuk ## New Cold Wars: China’s Rise, Russia’s Invasion, and America’s Struggle to Defend the West Lawrence D. Freedman Capsule Review ## Two Books on Russian Military Forces Lawrence D. Freedman Capsule Review

• Russia-Ukraine War - The New York Times

  Skip to contentSkip to site index Russia-Ukraine War Today’s Paper # Russia-Ukraine War A bitter and bloody war in Ukraine has devastated the country, further isolated Russia from the West and fueled economic insecurity around the world. ## Highlights 1. ### Russia Says It Used Nuclear-Capable Missile to Strike Western Ukraine The attack seemed intended to send a message to Europe as it strongly backs Kyiv in the peace talks. By Andrew E. Kramer and Cassandra Vinograd 2. ### What to Know About the Oreshnik, the Missile Russia Used Against Ukraine The attack was just the second time that Moscow had launched the nuclear-capable intermediate-range ballistic weapon.

• Ukraine War | Latest News & Updates - BBC

  Skip to content Watch Live Watch Live # # War in Ukraine ## Russia hits Ukraine with rarely used Oreshnik missile in fresh strikes It is only the second time Moscow has deployed the hypersonic ballistic missile, which was first used to hit Dnipro in November. 2 days ago Europe ## Romance and parenthood feel remote in Ukraine: 'I haven't had a date since before the war' Tumbling marriage and birth rates are shaping the future of a country whose population was already falling. 1 day ago Europe ## Missile attack on Kharkiv kills two including child, authorities say Russian officials say reports of the missile strike are untrue, suggesting the explosion was caused by Ukrainian ammunition. 3 Jan 2026 Europe [...] ## Latest updates 1 day ago ## Romance and parenthood feel remote in Ukraine: 'I haven't had a date since before the war' Tumbling marriage and birth rates are shaping the future of a country whose population was already falling. 1 day ago 2 days ago ## Russia hits Ukraine with rarely used Oreshnik missile in fresh strikes It is only the second time Moscow has deployed the hypersonic ballistic missile, which was first used to hit Dnipro in November. 2 days ago 2 days ago ## Swinney would send Scots troops to Ukraine if peace agreed The first minister also warned that the post-war peace in western Europe could be under threat. 2 days ago 3 days ago ## One million spent hours without heat and water after Russian strikes, Ukraine says [...] Ukraine has tried to evacuate areas of Sumy region near the Russian border, but many civilians have refused to leave. ## In this secret missile factory, Ukraine is ramping up its domestic arms industry The BBC goes to a secret Ukrainian factory, where they are manufacturing new long-range missiles. ## British paratrooper killed in Ukraine 'lived life of courage' Lance Corporal George Hooley is remembered by colleagues as a "born soldier" after the Ministry of Defence said the 28-year-old died in a "tragic accident". ## Ukrainians in war-ravaged Donbas weigh prospects of peace deal While many Ukrainians believe they have sacrificed too much for their country to lose territory to Russia, others are desperate for the war to end. ## Latest updates 1 day ago

• Russian Offensive Campaign Update | Product Line | ISW

  ISW’s Russia and Ukraine team produces the maps and analysis of record of the war in Ukraine. The Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment provides a synthetic running intelligence estimate of Putin’s political and military objectives in Ukraine and the design, prosecution, and outcomes of Russia’s war effort. ISW has published this update daily since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Each update includes an assessment of the latest battlefield changes at the operational and tactical levels of war as well as an updated strategic assessment and forecast of the war’s trajectory along with numerous supporting maps produced by ISW’s Geospatial Intelligence Team. This product line also includes prominent warning alerts.