It’s now one year since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began. Let’s take a brief look at the chronology of the entire most talked about international incident.
- On February 24, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared on television screens with a chilling announcement that he dubbed a “special military operation”. Putin opined that he had “left with no other option” except to launch a full-fledged war against its neighbouring nation. The temperature was around 20 degrees below freezing when millions of Ukrainians woke up with sirens of perilous emergency.
- The Russian President cited two reasons for his vicious action– Ukraine’s willingness to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two North American nations. And the other was Ukraine’s alleged atrocities on the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic.
- Although it was clear that the way ahead for Ukraine would not be a ‘bed of roses’, it was highly anticipated that its President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would flee the country, leaving his countrymen in tumultuous circumstances. For the First time he said to the international community that “I need ammunition, not a ride.”
- Instead, the actor-turned President filmed a rebellious video of himself saying “We are all here,”, in a declaration of his determination to stay in Kyiv and defend their independence. His decision to stay in the capital was pivotal and helped rally the Ukrainian people.
- ‘Provide us wings for freedom’: Zelenskyy urges UK’s Sunak to provide warplanes to the Ukrainian Air Force. Subsequently, in order to guard the sovereignty of Ukraine, President Zelenskyy signed a decree on the general mobilization of the population– means men between the ages of 18-60 were prohibited from leaving the country.
- At first, Putin launched an offensive near border regions and eventually headed towards Ukraine’s national capital Kyiv. However, amid international condemnation of executing war crimes, the aggressor took a U-turn and left the national capital.
- In the meantime, Ukrainian forces executed a significant setback for Russia after they sank the Moskva– Russia’s Black Sea fleet flagship. In May, the war-torn country lost its strategic port city– Mariupol and later Russia captured Lyman, an important transit hub in the east. In June, Russian forces captured the eastern city of Sievierodonetsk after heavy fighting.
- Between July to October, President Putin escalated the war and captured several regions including Severodonetsk after Ukrainian forces allegedly blew up a portion of the Crimean bridge. Also, it held referendums in four occupied regions– Kherson, Luhansk Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk.
- In November, Ukrainian forces claimed they had pushed Russians out of Kherson and back across the Dnieper River that bifurcates the country.
- In December last year, President Zelenskyy visited the United States– for the first time, he moved out of Ukraine ever since Putin ravaged the brutal war. During his entire speech, he urged to provide fierce weapons in order to shatter the desires of Russian forces. Later, he landed in the United Kingdom and urged the House of Commons to pace up the military aid. It is worth mentioning ever since the war escalated, he appeared in the Parliament of several countries via video conferencing, where he echoed for continuous military support.
- According to the latest UN human rights office (OHCHR) data, at least 8,000 non-combatants have been confirmed killed – with more than 13,300 injured. When Russian troops retreated at the end of March, they left behind a trail of more than 1,200 bodies. The neighbouring regions of the national capital– Bucha and Irpin witnessed mass killings where more than 458 bodies were found in one place.
- The day Russia declared the so-called “special military operations”, hundreds of multinational companies imposed or suspended their operations or moved their factories out of the country. This not only led to a major setback for the Russian economy but also affected the global economy. Even the US and several European countries including the UK are currently facing the wrath of energy sanctions imposed by the European Union on Moscow. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) slashed growth expectations for this year and 2022, equivalent to $1 trillion in lost production.
- With no sign of peace in sight, Ukraine and Russia are emerging from a winter stalemate determined to fight for strategic goals that are in lethal contrast. Ukraine wants to push Russia back to its internationally recognized borders, its motivated forces now equipped with more powerful offensive weapons arriving from the West.
A renowned international strategic expert, during a television debate, argued that the war would not end until one side gains enough leverage to impose terms in negotiations.
