New Delhi: It’s the eighth day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine that began on February 24 morning. The Eurasian giant attacked its neighbour, a former Soviet Union constituent, by land, sea and air, calling it a “special military operation” aimed to dislodge “neo-Nazis” ruling the country.
Since then, Ukraine has lost hundreds of people, including civilians, while the Russian defence ministry announced Wednesday that 498 of its troops have died and 1,597 more injured so far.
The first signs of an attack came after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered deployment of troops to the two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine that he recognised as independent entities on February 21.
The US and the European Union announced the first wave of sanctions against Russia on February 22.
On February 23, the Ukrainian parliament announced a state of emergency in the entire country, except for the two eastern regions — Donetsk People's Republic and the Lugansk People's Republic — where it had already been in place since 2014.
UKRAINE-RUSSIA CONFLICT: FULL COVERAGE
Here is a timeline of the events since February 24, when Russia launched a military attack on Ukraine.
February 24: In a televised address, Vladimir Putin ordered “special military operations” in eastern Ukraine, and asked Ukraine’s forces to lay down arms. Missile and artillery attacks began on Ukrainian air bases and major cities were targeted.
February 25: As Russian missiles reached capital Kyiv, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy made a plea to the international community to respond, asking for more sanctions against Russia. NATO said Russia had lied about its intentions, and announced that they were deploying more troops to eastern Europe.
February 26: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who had days ago halted the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea gas pipeline project that was designed to double the flow of Russian gas to Germany, said Berlin would send 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger surface-to-air missiles to Ukraine, reversing its policy of not exporting weapons to war zones.
In a major step, the US, EU and allies decided to block certain Russian banks’ access to the SWIFT international finance system.
February 27: With Kyiv still remaining in Ukrainian hands, Russian forces after battering other cities with artillery and cruise missiles, targeted Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city. Explosions were heard at oil and gas installations as Russian soldiers and armoured vehicles could be seen in different parts of the city.
February 28: Human rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, as also Ukraine's ambassador to the United States Oksana Markarova, accused Russia of using widely banned cluster bombs and vacuum bombs. It was alleged that a preschool in northeastern Ukraine was attacked when civilians took shelter inside. A vacuum bomb, or thermobaric weapon, is called ‘father of all bombs’. It generates a high-temperature explosion by sucking in oxygen from the surrounding air. The bomb is is said to be capable of vaporising human bodies.
March 1: Russian troops continued to shell cities after cities but failed to capture any as Ukrainian forces put up heavy resistance.
March 2: Russia claimed its forces had taken over Kherson, a port city in Ukraine, as the invasion turned more brutal on the seventh day.
In his first State of the Union address, US President Joe Biden promised to “inflict pain” on Putin. “We are choking off Russia’s access to technology that will sap its economic strength and weaken its military for years to come,” he said.
Fitch and Moody's slashed Russia's sovereign credit rating six notches to "junk" status, stating that the Western sanctions have raised concerns over Russia's ability to service its debt and weakening of its economy.
March 3: As fighting entered the second week, the United Nations said 1 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the Russian invasion began on February 24.