Russian President Vladimir Putin launched Europe’s biggest military assault since World War II with his Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, killing thousands of people, driving millions more from their homes, shaking the post-Cold War geopolitical order and roiling global markets.
After initially losing territory, Ukraine’s overmatched military unexpectedly fought Russian forces to a standstill in the north, prompting the Kremlin to refocus its attack on the eastern Donbas region. Ukraine has now called on its allies to help it rearm and prepare for what may stretch into a war lasting months or years.
Here’s a timeline of the main events so far.
Feb. 24
Russia launches its attack from three directions: Belarus in the north, the Donbas region in the east, and from Crimea, which Putin seized in 2014, in the south. The U.S. and European Union announce sanctions targeting Russia’s financial sector, technology imports and oligarchs. Russian stocks and the ruble plunge.
Feb. 25
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejects calls to flee Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, says his forces are fighting back, and calls for international support and for weapons. The EU imposes sanctions on Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
Feb. 27
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announces plans for a massive boost in defense spending in a historic policy shift. Germany will channel 100 billion euros to modernize the military and meet the NATO spending target of 2% of gross domestic product on defense by 2024.
Feb. 28
Ukraine applies for EU membership. Accession to the bloc is a long and arduous process, which requires the candidate to adopt established EU law and enact reforms, including to its judicial and economic systems. The move also requires the unanimous approval of all EU members.
March 1
Russian forces begin the siege of Mariupol, a port city with about 450,000 residents on the Sea of Azov.
March 2
The EU excludes seven Russian banks from the SWIFT international payments system and suspends broadcasting by media outlets Russia Today and Sputnik. Officials carve up the EU units of Russia’s largest lender, Sberbank, after sanctions prompt a run on deposits.
March 4
Russian forces occupy the site of Europe’s largest nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, in an attack that Ukrainian officials say ignited a fire and Lithuania’s president calls “nuclear terrorism.” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg rejects calls from Zelenskyy to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine, saying it would risk “a full-fledged war in Europe.” The number of refugees displaced inside and outside Ukraine surpasses a million.
March 8
The U.K. says it will ban all imports of Russian oil, a measure taken in concert with the U.S.
March 10
The first high-level talks between Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Russia’s Lavrov fail to make progress, with Kuleba saying the Kremlin is demanding that Kyiv surrender. A six-ton unmanned, Soviet-made reconnaissance drone streaks across three NATO countries from Ukraine to crash in the Croatian capital Zagreb, raising awkward questions about the alliance’s readiness.
The U.K. also freezes the assets of Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich as the EU approves sanctions against more wealthy Russians and more than 140 Russian lawmakers. The ruble hits a record low of almost 122 per dollar as economists predict a steep recession in the Russian economy.
March 13
Russian missiles hit a Ukrainian military training facility that had been used by NATO forces before the invasion. The attack near the western city of Lviv close to the Polish frontier killed 35 and wounded 134, and raised concern the war could spill over Ukraine’s borders.
March 15
Russian troops take over the largest hospital in Mariupol, taking more than 400 patients and medical staff hostage after targeting it with air strikes. That followed a March 9 strike on a children’s hospital that Ukrainian officials said killed pregnant women and newborns. The EU bans the sale to Russia of luxury goods and the purchase of many Russian steel and iron products, as well as targeting more oligarchs. Zelenskiy reiterates that Ukraine won’t push for NATO membership.
March 16
About 300 people are killed by a Russian air strike on the Mariupol Drama Theater, according to Ukrainian authorities. It was marked by the word “CHILDREN” in huge white letters to ward against an attack.
March 18
Fears of a bond default by Russia ease after $117 million in interest payments start to reach international investors.
March 24
Russian bond, ruble and stocks trading resume simultaneously for the first time in nearly a month, even as the Kremlin maintains strict capital controls on the currency.
March 25
Germany’s government announces plans to stop almost all Russian oil imports this year and broadly wean itself off of the country’s gas by mid-2024. Berlin repeats that Germany won’t back an immediate embargo on Russian energy, citing the cost to business and households and resisting pressure from Ukrainian officials who say fossil fuel purchases are helping fund Putin’s war.
March 29
After Ukrainian forces halt Russia’s advance toward Kyiv, inflicting thousands of casualties and destroying hundreds of aircraft, armored vehicles, and other weapons, the Kremlin says it will sharply cut military operations near the capital and the northern city of Chernihiv. In talks in Turkey, a Ukrainian negotiator said his country is seeking international security guarantees for territory that doesn’t include the occupied areas of Donbas and Crimea.
April 1
Russia pulls back its forces from the decommissioned nuclear power plant in Chernobyl and accuses Ukraine of raising radiation exposure risks. Kyiv blames Russia, and Ukraine’s state power company says Moscow’s forces received “significant doses” of radiation after digging trenches at the highly contaminated site.
April 3
Evidence of mass killings and other atrocities surfaces after Russian troops withdraw from Bucha and other areas around Kyiv. The EU condemns what it says may be war crimes and begins work on new sanctions. U.S. President Joe Biden says Putin could face trial at an international tribunal and vows additional penalties as well. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied targeting civilians and has blamed the West for staging the attacks, without providing strong evidence for its claims.
April 6
The U.S., EU and Group of Seven coordinate on new sanctions on Russia, including a U.S. ban on investment and an EU ban on coal imports.
Despite the penalties, the ruble returns to levels from before the invasion, propped up by capital controls and incoming hard-currency income from energy exports. Russia also slips closer to technical default after foreign banks declined to process about $650 million of dollar payments on its bonds.
April 7
The United Nations General Assembly votes to suspend Russia from the UN Human Rights Council over its conduct in Ukraine.
April 8
At least 52 people were killed and more than 100 wounded when at least one Russian cruise missile carrying cluster munitions hit the main train station in the eastern city of Kramatorsk, Ukrainian officials said. The attack on the main hub to evacuate civilians from an expected Russian offensive in Donbas drew condemnation from Western officials and calls for tighter sanctions.
