Who Was When
Wars

Russo-Ukrainian war (2022–present)

  • The Russian government calls it специальная военная операция ("special military operation")

– ongoing, as of 1 October 2026

See this year on the world timeline

Sides

Ukraine

Ukraine

against
Russia and its allies

Russia and North Korea

What happened

Russia massed troops near Ukraine's borders from late 2021 and demanded that NATO stop expanding. On 21 February 2022 it recognised the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, and on 24 February it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine from Russia, Belarus and Crimea, which Vladimir Putin called a "special military operation". Ukrainian forces stopped the advance on Kyiv, and Russian troops left the north by early April; UN investigators found Russian forces had killed civilians in Bucha, which Russia denies. Russia took Mariupol in May after a siege. In September and November Ukrainian counteroffensives took back much of the Kharkiv region and Kherson city, while Russia declared four Ukrainian regions part of Russia, which the UN General Assembly condemned. A Ukrainian offensive in 2023 made little headway; Russia took Bakhmut and Avdiivka and advanced slowly. In August 2024 Ukraine sent troops into Russia's Kursk region, where North Korean soldiers later fought beside Russian forces. The United States and European governments have armed and funded Ukraine. Western governments say Iran has supplied Russia with drones; Iran says it sent only a few, before the war. Missile and drone strikes on both countries continue, and Russia holds roughly a fifth of Ukraine.

Outcome: Ongoing: US-mediated talks have produced no ceasefire, and Russia holds roughly a fifth of Ukraine's territory, including Crimea.

Key events

Leaders

  • Volodymyr Zelenskyy · President of Ukraine · Ukraine
  • Valerii Zaluzhnyi · Commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces, 2021–2024 · Ukraine
  • Oleksandr Syrskyi · Commander-in-chief of Ukraine's armed forces from February 2024 · Ukraine
  • Vladimir Putin · President of Russia · Russia and its allies
  • Sergei Shoigu · Russian defence minister until May 2024 · Russia and its allies
  • Andrei Belousov · Russian defence minister from May 2024 · Russia and its allies
  • Valery Gerasimov · Chief of the Russian General Staff · Russia and its allies

Deaths

Death tolls are estimates and often contested. Each is a range from its sources; a figure one party gives is marked as theirs.

Battle deaths · All sides

Civilian deaths · All sides

Sources