by Cliff Vacin ‘25

Nearing the one-year anniversary of the war going on between Russia and Ukraine, this war has been the kickoff of tension between the 2 countries. This war has been going on for 8 years, starting in February 2014 after the overthrow of the pro-Russia Ukrainian president, Viktor Yanukovych. This event has affected many Russian and Ukrainian families, as well as the people that live there.

February 24 2022 – In the first phase of war Russian President Vladimir Putin announces his decision to launch a military operation in eastern Ukraine. The airspace over Ukraine was restricted to non-civilian air traffic, and the whole area was deemed an active conflict zone. Right after Putin’s announcement, explosions were reported in Kyiv, Odessa, Kharkiv, and the Donbas, with Ukrainian officials reporting that troops had landed in Mariupol and Odessa, coming from Belarus. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announces that Ukrainian males, ages 18 to 60 may not leave Ukraine. More than 130  Ukrainian citizens are confirmed dead on the first day of the invasion that marked the start of the war. 

March 2022 – Kherson is attacked by Russian forces on the first day of March, and Belarus joins Russian forces in Ukraine. Russia starts recruiting citizens from Syria to fight with them, and by March 14 over 40,000 Syrians had registered to fight. The Prime Minister of Czech Republic, the Prime Minister of Slovenia, the Prime Minister of Poland, and the Deputy Prime Minister of Poland visit Ukraine on March 16. The regional drama theatre in Mariupol, sheltering around 1,000 civilians, is bombed later that day. The word “Дети” (children in Russian) is written out in an attempt for it to be identified as an air raid shelter with children, not a military target. Ukrainian and Russian negotiators meet in Istanbul, Turkey, but nothing important comes out of it.

April 2022 – Izium is taken under Russian control. A mass murder takes place in Bucha, with at least 300 people killed and 280 of them buried in mass graves. April 8 starts the second phase of the war, where the area of heavy fighting shifts to the South and East of Ukraine, with Russia aiming to overtake Donbas and Southern Ukraine. On April 18, Zelenskyy announces that Russia has seized Kreminna. Ukraine further accuses Russia of bombing a hospital sheltering 300 people in the city of Mariupol. Putin captures Mariupol the next day. Kherson starts using rubles, the currency used in Russia, as their currency under Putin’s rule. Odesa airport gets hit with a missile strike.

May 2022 – Ukraine states that Russian troops have attacked and entered the Azovstal Iron and Steel Works complex; however, Russia denies this. A Russian ship is hit by a Ukrainian Neptune anti-ship cruise missile, setting the ship on fire. Russia dropped a bomb on a school in the village of Bilohorivka. Two people were confirmed to be killed, and 60 others were feared dead. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) states that Russia is losing momentum and Ukraine has a fair shot at winning the war, as Zelenskyy states that Russian Forces were at a “dead end.” Russian missiles hit the Palace of Culture building in Lozova in the Kharkiv region. Zelenskyy calls the attack “absolute evil” and “absolute stupidity.” 

June 2022 – A nitric acid tank in a chemical factory in Sievierodonetsk is hit by Russian bombardment, forcing people to stay indoors. By June 2, Russia controlled 20 percent of Ukrainian territory. Ukraine kills the Lieutenant General and Major General of the 29th Combined Arms Army. The last of the three bridges connecting Sievierodonetsk to Ukraine are destroyed, with Russia controlling 80 percent of the city. The New York Times examined Russian weapons used in Ukraine and reported that more than 210 of them were banned under various international treaties. Ukrainian forces withdraw from Sievierodonetsk. Russia drops a missile on a shopping center in Kremenchuk, with more than 1,000 people inside, killing at least 20 people. Russia bans all media from countries that have banned Russian media due to the war. 

July 2022 – The United States sends its fourteenth aid package for Ukraine, which is worth $280 million. Russia’s State Duma starts preparing legislation to convert to a war economy, to be able to order companies to produce war supplies and make workers work overtime. Alexei Gorinov, a Moscow City Councilor, is sentenced to seven years in prison for making anti-war comments. Filtration camps are set up by Russia on seized Ukrainian territory to prevent Ukrainians from leaving for the EU. Ukraine joins NATO’s Multilateral Interoperability Program. The Multilateral Interoperability Program “achieves international interoperability of Command and Control Information Systems at all levels from corps to battalion, or lowest appropriate level, in order to support multinational, combined and joint operations”. North Korea recognizes the independence of the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic, prompting Ukraine to introduce sanctions against the North Korean government. The Battle of Donbas starts on July 17. Up to 60 employees of the Head of the Security Service of Ukraine and the Prosecutor General of Ukraine are found to have collaborated with Russia. Russia captures the Vuhlehirsk Power Station, the second-biggest power plant in Ukraine. 

August 2022 – The Russian Supreme Court declares the Azov Regiment, a unit of the National Guard of Ukraine, a terrorist group, allowing for harsher penalties to be imposed on members. Swedish Defence Ministers say that Sweden is ready to directly produce weapons for Ukraine. A missile hits a three-story residential building in Kharkiv, killing 12, injuring 20, including at least one child, with the building being completely destroyed. According to the Jewish Agency for Israel, since the beginning of war about 20,500 Jewish people have left Russia, out of an estimated population of 165,000. This is most likely due to the history of Russians blaming Jewish people in times of trouble. Estonia and Poland removes Soviet-era monuments due to Russia. The third phase starts on August 29, in which Ukraine launches a counteroffensive in the South.

September 2022 – Ukrainian forces retake Kupiansk, Izium, and parts of Kharkiv Oblast, recovering 770 square miles. By September 12, Ukraine claims it had reached the Russia-Ukraine border, retaking a total of 2,300 square miles. A Russian missile hits the outskirts of the South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant as Ukraine recaptures the village of Bilohorivka. Putin officially announces partial mobilization to begin immediately. Over 194,000 Russian citizens, primarily fighting-age men and their families left Russia after announcements of a draft. Most have gone to Kazakhstan, Serbia, Georgia, and Finland. Finland announces the closure of its borders to Russian citizens immediately after. 

October 2022 – Ukrainian troops take over Lyman and Yampil. A Ukrainian armored offensive burst through Russian lines in the south, capturing villages along the Dnieper river, with this being the biggest Ukrainian advance since the war began. Ukraine blows up the Crimea bridge, killing 4. The bridge holds a large amount of trade and is a “physical” attachment of Crimea to Russian territory. Due to this, Russia launches a massive missile strike across the entire territory of Ukraine, including the capital of Kyiv, killing at least 23 civilians and injuring more than 100. The UN’s General Assembly passes a revolution by a large majority, calling for countries to not recognize the four regions of Ukraine that Russia has claimed. Only Belarus, North Korea, Nicaragua, Russia, and Syria voted against it. Power outages are reported across Ukraine as Russian airstrikes across the country hit energy facilities. Russia launches more than 50 missiles at energy infrastructures, with 13 people being injured and 18 facilities being hit. 40-percent of residents in Kyiv are left without water, and 270,000 apartments are left without electricity. 

November 2022 – Putin signs a decree that allows people convicted of serious crimes to be mobilized into the Russian army, with certain exceptions. The UN’s General Assembly has passed a resolution that holds Russia responsible for all damage caused to Ukraine by the invasion and demands reparations. Russia launches about 85 to 100 missiles at Ukraine, causing severe shortages of electricity and water in multiple cities. One missile crosses over Polish borders and struck the village of Przewodow, killing two civilians. More than 10 million people were without power by November 17, but nearly a day later Ukrainian officials reported that electricity had already been restored to nearly 100 percent of Ukraine. The European Parliament declares Russia a “state sponsor of terrorism.” This declaration is symbolic, however, it calls for more sanctions. 

December 2022 – Putin acknowledges that the “special military operation” is taking longer than expected, though the Russian nuclear arsenal is preventing the conflict from escalating. The war is still being updated up to December 13th.