Timeline
of the War
Russia’s war against Ukraine started in 2014 with the illegal annexation of Crimea and the war in Donbas. For years, Russia destabilized Ukraine through hybrid warfare, propaganda, and military aggression while denying responsibility.
20 Feb
2014
Crimea Annexation
In February 2014, after Ukraine’s Revolution of Dignity, Russia seized Crimea using unmarked soldiers (later admitted to be Russian troops). A sham referendum was held under military occupation, leading to Crimea’s illegal annexation in March 2014.
This violated Ukraine’s sovereignty and international law, including the Budapest Memorandum, which guaranteed Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
The Russian military convoy without any insignia near Sevastopol. March 10, 2014. Photo: Baz Ratner / REUTERS
MARCH
2014
START OF THE HYBRID WARFARE IN EASTERN UKRAINE
Following Crimea’s annexation, Russia fueled conflict in eastern Ukraine, supporting separatists in Donetsk and Luhansk with weapons, mercenaries, and troops. Over 14,000 people were killed from 2014 to 2022. Notable war crimes include the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in July 2014, which killed 298 civilians. Despite ceasefire agreements like the Minsk Accords, Russia continued its aggression while denying involvement.
Russian flags and symbols of the so-called “DPR” on the seized building of the Donetsk Regional State Administration. April 7, 2014.
Photo: Andrew Butko
FEB 24
2022
START OF THE HYBRID WARFARE IN EASTERN UKRAINE
On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion, aiming to overthrow Ukraine’s government and occupy its territories. Despite Russian advances, Ukraine mounted fierce resistance. The invasion has caused mass atrocities, including indiscriminate bombings, civilian massacres, and forced deportations, making it one of the most documented wars in history.
Kharkiv downtown street destroyed by Russian bombardment. March 1, 2022.
Photo: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=321813666640956&set=pcb.321813919974264
FEB-MAY
2022
MARIUPOL SIEGE
The port city of Mariupol endured a brutal siege lasting from February to May 2022. Russian forces bombarded civilian areas, including a maternity hospital and a theater sheltering civilians, resulting in thousands of deaths. The city's infrastructure was destroyed, and survivors faced severe humanitarian conditions.
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A street of Mariupol during the siege of the city in the course of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. March 12, 2022.
MARCH 2022
BUCHA MASSACRE
Following the withdrawal of Russian forces from Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv, in late March 2022, Ukrainian authorities discovered mass graves and streets strewn with civilian bodies. Reports indicated that many victims had their hands bound and bore signs of execution. Ukrainian officials reported at least 458 bodies recovered, including nine children under 18. The United Nations documented the unlawful killings of at least 73 civilians in Bucha.
The city of Bucha after liberation from the Russian occupiers. April 2, 2022.
Photo: Serhii Nuzhnenko
MARCH 2022
IRPIN DESTRUCTION
The city of Irpin, adjacent to Kyiv, faced extensive shelling and airstrikes during March 2022. Approximately 300 civilians were killed, and much of the city's infrastructure was destroyed. Irpin's resistance played a crucial role in defending the capital, but at a significant human and structural cost.
A man carries an elderly woman as a group of people walk through an improvised path created under a bombed bridge over the Irpin River, in Ukraine, March 8, 2022.
Photo: Yan Boechat/VOA
MARCH 2022— present
ZAPORIZHZHIA NUCLEAR POWER PLANT OCCUPATION
In an unprecedented event in history, Russian forces occupied Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia in March 2022, turning it into a military base. This marked the first time ever that a nuclear power plant became militarily occupied during an armed conflict. Repeated shelling around the plant has brought the world to the brink of a catastrophic nuclear disaster. Ukrainian staff working under occupation have faced harassment, illegal detentions, and torture, while being forced to maintain the plant under hostile conditions. Russia’s actions violate international nuclear safety standards and endanger millions of lives across Europe.
The IAEA team observes the damage caused by shelling on the roof of the special building at the ZNPP that houses, among other items, the fresh nuclear fuel and the solid radioactive waste storage facility. September 1, 2022.
Photo: LLs
MAy 2022
AZOVSTAL SIEGE IN MARIUPOL
In May 2022, Russian forces surrounded the Azovstal steel plant, where Ukrainian defenders and civilians sought refuge. Despite constant bombardments and shortages of food, water, and medical supplies, defenders resisted for weeks before surrendering under Russian promises of safe passage—many were later subjected to torture and imprisonment. Many defenders are in Russian captivity until now.
Air strikes on Mariupol continue, the enemy is carrying out assault operations in the Azovstal plant area. April 20, 2022.
Photo: armyinform.com.ua
https://armyinform.com.ua/2022/04/20/tryvayut-aviaudary-po-mariupolyu-vorog-zdijsnyuye-shturmovi-diyi-v-rajoni-morskogo-portu-ta-zavodu-azovstal/ with UploadWizard
JUNE 2023
KAKHOVKA DAM DESTRUCTION
In June 2023, Russian forces blew up the Kakhovka Dam in southern Ukraine, unleashing catastrophic flooding across the Kherson region. This caused numerous civilian casualties, displaced thousands, and left entire communities underwater. The destruction also triggered a massive environmental disaster, contaminating water supplies, devastating agricultural lands, and destroying wildlife habitats. Evidence, including intercepted communications and satellite imagery, revealed that Russian forces had long planned to threaten and ultimately destroy the dam as part of their terror campaign.
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Kherson the next day after the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam. June 6, 2023.
2022—present
DESTRUCTION OF ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE
Russia has systematically targeted Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, launching missile strikes on power plants, substations, and vital energy facilities. These attacks, particularly during winter, left millions of Ukrainians without electricity, heating, and water. DTEK, Ukraine's largest private energy company, has faced multiple assaults on its facilities. On November 17, 2024, Russian forces launched a large-scale attack severely damaging equipment at DTEK's thermal power plants. This marked the eighth major assault on DTEK's energy facilities in that year alone. By December 13, 2024, DTEK's thermal power plants had endured over 200 missile, drone, and artillery strikes since the full-scale invasion began.
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A fire at Kharkiv TEC-5 due to Russian shelling. September 11, 2022.
Photo: National Police of Ukraine
2022—present
FORCED DEPORTATIONS AND FILTRATION CAMPS
Since the full-scale invasion, Russian forces have forcibly deported hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian civilians, including over 20,000 children, to Russia. Many were subjected to so-called "filtration" processes in makeshift camps, where they endured interrogations, physical abuse, and arbitrary detentions. Adults who fail the "filtration" process often vanish without a trace.
Map of 20 Russian filtration camps in the Donetsk Region of Ukraine, data according to Conflict Observatory and the researchers from Yale University. Color coding of camp types: registration, secondary, interrogation, detention, holding. August 26, 2022.
Photo: Own work, from https://hub.conflictobservatory.org/portal/apps/sites/#/home/pages/filtration-1 using File:Donetsk Oblast location map.svg
2022—present
ABDUCTION OF UKRAINIAN CHILDREN
Over 20,000 Ukrainian children have been abducted, including orphans and those separated from their families during attacks. Many were sent to Russian territories or placed with Russian families under the guise of "adoption," erasing their Ukrainian identities. Some children were forced to participate in pro-Russian propaganda events.These actions are part of Russia’s broader strategy to erase Ukrainian identity and culture in occupied territories, violating international law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention. The deportations have been condemned by global organizations, including the United Nations and the International Criminal Court, as war crimes.
About 1.5 thousand children from the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions came to Yevpatoria for rest and recovery. October 8, 2022.
Photo: Ministry of Information of the Republic of Crimea
2022—present
ENVIRONMENTAL CRIMES
Russian military actions have caused environmental devastation, including the killing of endangered bison in protected areas and the destruction of forests, rivers, and farmlands. These crimes not only harm Ukraine’s natural resources but also have long-term consequences for its recovery.Russia’s actions during its full-scale invasion show a clear disregard for international law, human rights, and global safety. These are not the actions of a country seeking peace—they are acts of terror, genocide, and environmental destruction.
Employees of the National Natural Park Tuzliv estuaries in Odesa region found 149 red-letter newts, which died due to the terrorist attack of the Russian troops on the Kakhovka HPP. June 14, 2023.
Photo: Facebook Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine