The Russian invasion of Ukraine started on February 24, 2022. Attacks by Russian forces were reported in major cities across Ukraine, including Berdyansk, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, Sumy, and the capital Kyiv. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) verified
in Ukraine during the war as of February 2024. A separate
. The war resulted in a humanitarian crisis, as thousands of Ukrainians were internally displaced or fled abroad. Neighboring
from Ukraine, at around 17.3 million as of December 2023, followed by Hungary, Romania, and Russia.
How do Russian and Ukrainian militaries compare?
Russia's
active military personnel was over four times larger than Ukraine’s as of 2023. Furthermore, Russia’s total aircraft was 13 times, the number of armored vehicles four times, and the naval fleet 16 times larger than that of Ukraine.
Russia had the third-largest military spending in the world in 2022, at over 86 billion U.S. dollars. To compare,
Ukraine expended 44 billion U.S. dollars. However,
Ukraine has received military aid from Western countries, with the largest amount coming from the United States (U.S.)
International reaction
Western countries, such as European Union (EU) members, Switzerland, the United Kingdom (UK), and the U.S. imposed
sanctions on Russia. The restrictions targeted the financial sector, individuals affiliated with the government, and exports of high-tech products to Russia, among others. The EU also banned Russian airlines from its airspace, while Germany halted the certification of the gas pipeline
Nord Stream 2. Albania, Australia, Canada, Japan, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan announced further sanctions. Major international companies, such as Apple, H&M, Ikea, Inditex, and McDonald's, suspended operations in Russia. While
China and India took a neutral stance in the conflict, the governments of Belarus, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, Syria, and Venezuela officially supported Russia.
Economic impact
Following the invasion, the
value of the Russian ruble against the U.S. dollar and
euro dropped to a historic low. Central Bank interventions and the demand to pay for gas in Russian rubles have strengthened the currency. Following the restrictions on Russian fossil fuel imports into the U.S. and the EU, Russian fossil fuels exports shifted to Asian countries,
making China the leading destination. Economies all over the world depended on Russia and Ukraine on the two countries' major export commodities,
such as wheat. Furthermore,
Russia exported the sixth-largest volume of aluminum and was the
leading producer of palladium.
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