After several weeks of tensions, Moscow officially recognized the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics, with Russian troops launching an offensive against Ukraine on Thursday morning, February 24, confirming US warnings from earlier days.
The operation, which Russia says is aimed at protecting Donbass separatists, began with large-scale airstrikes against Ukrainian military targets across the country, soon followed by ground attacks.
read more: In Kiev, Kharkiv or Slovensk, the next morning
On Friday, February 25, Russian troops seized the unused Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which had been exposed to unusual radiation. In more detail, the risks of conflict at all Ukrainian nuclear sites are of concern to experts.
read more: “Nuclear power plants are not designed for war zones”
The fighting soon reached Kiev, especially with airstrikes at the Kostomal airport in the northwestern capital of Ukraine, hoping to capture Russia without firing.
read more: The day the war broke out in Kiev
But Russian progress slowed, and despite the attacks, Ukrainian forces were able to capture Kiev, sinking a full curfew.
read more: With the Ukrainian players, excitement from what has happened so far
At the Kiev station, where the ballet of trains has not yet been interrupted by war, people fleeing to the western part of the country, less vulnerable, meet volunteers who come to defend the city. The bombings will finally resume on the evening of February 28th.
read more: In besieged Kiev, exits and fighters
If the Russian military can build a bridge in Ukraine, its progress in other parts of the country does not seem credible. It is advancing relatively quickly south of Crimea, which was captured in 2014, but has not been able to capture the country’s second city, Kharkiv, although it pays homage to the bombings.
read more: Putin’s Blitzkrieg beats
The entry of President Lukashenko, a close ally of Vladimir Putin, into the conflict in Belarus will not make a significant difference. 28 Monday marked the first talks between the fighters in Komal in southeastern Belarus, which did not lead to any progress.
read more: The frightening first steps towards speech
The international reaction was not long in coming: if China and India, in particular, did not condemn the Russian invasion, most Western nations, led by the United States and the European Union, would have imposed severe sanctions on Moscow. Exclude some Russian banks from Swift, the payment system between global banks.
read more: Europeans’ economic war against Putin’s “organization.”
When stock markets open on Monday, the effects will be faster as the ruble falls and plunges the Russian economy into panic.
read more: Russia’s central bank is trying to stem the ruble’s fall
Switzerland, which was initially criticized for not taking major sanctions against Russia, on Monday aligned its actions with those of the European Union.
read more: Switzerland joins Russian sanctions on EU
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Moscow, is driven by the country’s reconciliation with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), while focusing on the Atlantic alliance, while Vladimir Putin raises his voice and resurrects the nuclear threat.
read more: Defending Ukraine is NATO’s indirect means of confronting the Russian military
read more: Putin and the nuclear fire, question time
Even Germany, which for a long time was reluctant to increase its military spending, decided to return and send dangerous weapons to Ukraine.
read more: Berlin facing Moscow causes a 180 degree turn
read more: Who supplies arms to Ukraine?
There is no doubt that Moscow’s decision to invade its neighbor seals Kiev’s European destiny, which has long been a demand of union members. More broadly, the twenty-seven reaction to the conflict testifies to a new unity in military affairs.
read more: Ursula van der Leyen opens the door to Europe for the 27th wonder of Ukraine
The unity of the European Union and NATO may face challenges other than the invasion of Ukraine. Because, on the borders of Russia, other hotspots are possible gas belly for Moscow: the separatist republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which were the impetus for the lightning invasion of Georgia in 2008, and Transnistria, Moldova. Border with Ukraine.
read more: In the east of Europe, the cement of fear