2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

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"Russian invasion of Ukraine" redirects here. For previous
invasions, see List of invasions and occupations of Ukraine.

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

Part of the Russo-Ukrainian War

Military situation as of 1 December 2022

Controlled by Ukraine
Controlled by Russia

Detailed map
Date 24 February 2022 – present
(9 months, 1 week and 1 day)
Location Ukraine[c]
Status Ongoing (list of engagements · territorial
control · timeline of events)

Belligerents
Ukraine
Russia

 Donetsk People's
Republic[a]
 Luhansk People's
 Republic[a]
Supported by:
Belarus[b]

Commanders and leaders

Vladimir Putin Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Units involved
Order of battle Order of battle

Strength
Russia: ~175,000–190,000[6][7] Ukraine:
DPR: 20,000 [8]
196,600 (armed forces)
LPR: 14,000[8] 102,000 (paramilitary)[9]

Strength estimates are as of the start of the invasion.

Casualties and losses

Reports vary widely, see Casualties for details.

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2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine

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Russo-Ukrainian War

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Post-Soviet conflicts

On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine in a major

escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014.
The invasion has likely resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on
both sides and caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World
War II, with an estimated 8 million people being displaced
[10][11]

within the country by late May as well as 7.8 million Ukrainians

fleeing the country as of 8 November 2022. Within five [12][13][14][15]

weeks of the invasion, Russia experienced its greatest

emigration since the 1917 October Revolution. The invasion has [16]

also caused global food shortages. [17][18]

Following the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution, Russia annexed

Crimea, and Russian-backed paramilitaries seized part of
the Donbas region of south-eastern Ukraine, which consists
of Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts, sparking a regional war. In [19][20]

March 2021, Russia began a large military build-up along its

border with Ukraine, eventually amassing up to 190,000 troops
and their equipment. Despite the build-up, denials of plans to
invade or attack Ukraine were issued by various Russian
government officials up to the day before the invasion. On 21 [24]

February 2022, Russia recognised the Donetsk People's

Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic, two self-proclaimed
breakaway quasi-states in the Donbas. The next day, [25]

the Federation Council of Russia authorised the use of military

force and Russian troops entered both territories. [26]

The invasion began on the morning of 24 February, when [27]

Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a "special military

operation" aiming for the "demilitarisation" and "denazification"
[28]

of Ukraine. In his address, Putin espoused irredentist views,

[29][30]

challenged Ukraine's right to statehood, and

[31] [32][33]

falsely claimed Ukraine was governed by neo-Nazis who

[34]

persecuted the ethnic Russian minority. Minutes later, missiles,[35]

rockets and airstrikes hit across Ukraine, including the
capital Kyiv, followed by a large ground invasion from multiple
directions. Ukrainian president Volodymyr
[36][37]

Zelenskyy enacted martial law and a general mobilisation. [38]

Russian attacks were initially launched on a northern

[39]

front from Belarus towards Kyiv, a north-eastern

front towards Kharkiv, a southern front from Crimea, and a south-
eastern front from Luhansk and Donetsk. Russia's advance
[40][41]

towards Kyiv stalled in March, with Russian troops retreating from

the northern front by April. On the southern and south-eastern
fronts, Russia captured Kherson in March and then Mariupol in
May after a siege. On 19 April, Russia launched a renewed
attack on the Donbas region, with Luhansk Oblast fully captured
by 3 July. Russian forces continued to bomb both military and
[42]

civilian targets far from the frontline. Ukrainian forces

[43][44]

launched counteroffensives in the south in August, and in the

northeast in September, successfully recapturing the majority
of Kharkiv Oblast. Soon after, Russia announced the illegal
annexation of four partially occupied Ukrainian oblasts. In the
course of the southern counteroffensive, Ukraine retook Kherson
in November.
The invasion has received widespread international
condemnation. The United Nations General
Assembly passed a resolution condemning the invasion and
demanding a full withdrawal of Russian forces. The International[45]

Court of Justice ordered Russia to suspend military operations

and the Council of Europe expelled Russia. Many
countries imposed sanctions on Russia, as well as on its
ally Belarus, which have affected the economies of Russia and
the world, and provided humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine,
[46]

totaling over $80B from 40 countries as of August 2022.

[47]

Protests occurred around the world; those in Russia were met

[48]

with mass arrests and increased media censorship, including a [49][50]

ban on the words "war" and "invasion". Over 1,000 companies

[37][51]
have pulled out of Russia and Belarus in response to the
invasion. The International Criminal Court has opened an
[52]

investigation into crimes against humanity in Ukraine since 2013,

including war crimes in the 2022 invasion.
[53]