One year ago, on February 20th, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized a “special military operation.” Troops and tanks rolled into the neighboring country Ukraine, the culmination of years of conflict and tension. in 2014, Russia had annexed the Ukrainian region of Crimea, based on a vote for annexation that has been widely condemned. The conflict lies with Putin’s desire for a return of the might of the Soviet Union, and during the Cold War period Ukraine was under the belt of the Kremlin. Ukraine had a far different goal, of becoming a strong sovereign nation that was rapidly moving towards NATO and the EU, and away from the grip of Putin. This final factor was the final push to war, and Russia began to mobilize its forces for combat. When that moment came, Russia clearly hoped for a rapid war that achieved their goals of “demilitarizing and denazifying” the nation - so they claim. In reality, it’s about the subjugation of. Ukraine
This would not be the case, as is seen now clearly, a year from that fateful day.
It’s been 365 days of brutal fighting. Ukraine, led by the charismatic Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has stepped up to the insurmountable challenge of holding back a force that seemed to have all the advantages. Russia had size and numbers, but the smaller nation has held their ground. They pushed Putin’s army from the gates of Kyiv, enduring brutal rocket attacks that have led to the deaths of many civilians. With the help of Western weapons, Ukraine has done better than many of us expected - and his enemy most certainly underestimated him.
The war has continued to rage, as fiercely as ever, since those opening shots. Ukraine is now pushing hard on the invading force, though Russia has made some significant gains: it’s secured much of the separatist regions in the East, who wanted to join Russia in the first place and were thus a key cause of the conflict, and the remaining soldiers at the port city of Mariupol were forced to surrender. The winner of this conflict, if there will be one, is still long from determined.
This war has come at great cost to the people of both the invaders and the defenders. Russia has been economically pummeled by Western nations, who have imposed a range of sanctions. Europe has begun to cut off its dependence on Russian resources, as has the United States, weathering the gas and oil price hikes in favor of punishing the aggressor. Russia’s people, who are suffering with their economy, have put up some resistance, but any opposition has been ruthlessly quashed by the government. Ukraine’s people have endured far, far worse as a result of the Ukraine War. Thousands have lost their homes, their families, or their own lives. Ukraine’s Prosecutor General has recorded 65,000 alleged war crimes against his people, and, as a lawyer describes it, “don't think I've ever seen such a calculated plan to effectively enslave and subjugate millions of people.” I won’t go into the crimes in detail, it’s so devastating, but suffice it to say that Russia has committed many crimes against the people of Ukraine.
This war doesn’t seem to be ending anytime soon - neither countries have shown much waver in their resolve. Ukraine and Russia both refuse to yield, and Western countries have continued their support of the defending country. The US alone has dedicated $13 billion to the conflict, and coupled with other countries the total is at $36 billion. Sanctions still make basic things like banking hard for the Russian people.
Which leads us to the question: how will the Ukraine War end?
This is a question that there is no set answer to, and will continue to be asked for some time. One of the two nations could win outright (unlikely), or the battle could sort of fizzle out into an armed stalemate, where no side is able to win ground. Putin could be overthrown, and the replacement government could retreat or not attack any farther.
What do you guys think?