Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a shameless land grab. But dogged Ukrainian resistance has forced them back
land grab. At the height of Russia’s success its troops controlled, or were advancing on, around 160,000 square kilometres of Ukrainian territory—about 25% of the country. That was in March. Since then Russia’s president and armed forces have suffered humiliatingRussian aggression against Ukraine is nothing new. In 2014 the Kremlin annexed Crimea, a peninsula in southern Ukraine that juts into the Black Sea.
But Russia’s new invasion was far larger than anything it had tried before. Vladimir Putin, its president, began waging war on February 24th. Shortly after, Kyiv was under attack. Missiles struck buildings in and around the capital and other major cities. Russian armed forces moved in from Russia, Belarus and Crimea. The bulk of Russia’s troops travelled towards Kyiv in a pincer movement from the north-east and north-west. By February 28th they were just 25km from the city centre. Beyond taking the capital, the Kremlin aimed to create a land bridge connecting Crimea with Russia through south-east Ukraine. By late March Russian forces had made significant gains .
But their progress proved to be short-lived. Dogged Ukrainian resistance around Kyiv forced Russian forces to abandon their assault on the capital and to publicly redefine their aims. Their attention shifted to Donbas in the east; the Kremlin’s intent was to finish the job it started in Donetsk and Luhansk in 2014. Still, months of stalemate followed.
Ukraine’s advances began to slow with the onset of winter and the mobilisation of Russia’s new recruits. Nonetheless, the scale of its counter-offensive has been impressive. In late January Britain’s defence ministry said that Ukraine had liberated 54% of the territories that Russia had seized since February 24th 2022. Ukrainian officials have been warning that Russia is planning a large-scale offensive. That offensive has probably begun, focused on Donbas.
France Dernières Nouvelles, France Actualités
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