Russia-Ukraine War

Introduction & Top Questions
The toppling of the Yanukovych government and the invasion of Crimea
The war in the Donbas
- The Russian proxy war and the Poroshenko administration
- Minsk II and the election of Volodymyr Zelensky
The Russian invasion of Ukraine
- The Russian buildup and Putin’s “special military operation”
- The Battle of Kyiv and the initial Russian advance
- The refugee crisis and evidence of Russian war crimes
International support for Ukraine
- Zelensky appeals to the West, the sinking of the Moskva, and the fall of Mariupol
- The isolation of Russia and the expansion of NATO
- Russian disinformation and the meme war
The Ukrainian counterattack
- The Ukrainian summer counteroffensive and the liberation of Kharkiv oblast
- Putin’s “partial mobilization” and the expanding role of the Wagner Group
- The attack on the Kerch Strait bridge and the liberation of Kherson
The war in 2023 and 2024
- The Battle of Bakhmut and Prigozhin’s rebellion
- Ukraine’s Western arsenal grows and Putin faces war crimes charges
- Ukraine’s 2023 counteroffensive and the destruction of Kakhovka Dam
- Russian advances in the Donbas and Ukraine’s offensive in Kursk
- The war in the Black Sea
Costs and casualties: the price of Putin’s war

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images, Videos & Interactives

Russia-Ukraine War

Russia-Ukraine War

Independence Square in Kyiv

Viktor Yanukovych

Protesters at Kyiv's Independence Square in February 2014

Ukraine crisis: Sevastopol

Donets Basin, or Donbas

Donbas; Ukraine crisis

Russia-Ukraine War: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Dec 25, 2025

News •

Russian court sentences pro-war activist and Putin critic to 6 years in prison • Dec. 25, 2025, 1:54 PM ET (AP)

Zelenskyy says he's open to creating demilitarized zone in Ukraine's industrial heartland • Dec. 24, 2025, 2:20 PM ET (AP)

Major Russian drone and missile attack on Ukraine kills at least 3 people and cuts power • Dec. 23, 2025, 6:39 AM ET (AP)

Ukraine's Zelenskyy says progress in US-led peace talks is 'quite solid' • Dec. 22, 2025, 11:00 PM ET (AP)

The killing of a general in Moscow follows a series of assassinations Russia blames on Ukraine • Dec. 22, 2025, 10:27 AM ET (AP)

Facts

Also Known As	2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
Date	2022 - present
Location	Ukraine
Participants	Russia • Ukraine

Photos and Videos

Russia-Ukraine War

Independence Square in Kyiv

Viktor Yanukovych

Protesters at Kyiv's Independence Square in February 2014

Ukraine crisis: Sevastopol

Donets Basin, or Donbas

Donbas; Ukraine crisis

How did Volodymyr Zelensky become president of Ukraine?

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Ukraine: The Russian invasion of Ukraine

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