(NEW YORK) — One year after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine, both sides are still fighting for control of areas in eastern and southern Ukraine.
Ukrainian troops have liberated nearly 30,000 square miles of their territory from Russian forces since the invasion began on Feb. 24, 2022, but Putin appears to be preparing for a long and bloody war. Tens of thousands of Russian and Ukrainian soldiers have already died on the battlefield, while Ukrainian civilians continue to be terrorized by Russian missiles.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Feb 24, 6:52 AM EST
How the Russia-Ukraine conflict became a cultural war
In the basement of the Syayvo bookstore in Ukraine’s capital, hundreds of Russian language books stand piled, waiting to be pulped.
The books — ranging from everything between the classics of Russian literature to works translated into Russian and Soviet-era textbooks — have been donated by Ukrainians who have turned away from Russian culture to embrace their own since the invasion last year.
They are set to be recycled and turned into Ukrainian language texts or other products, with all profits going to support the war effort, Nadia Kibenko, the 32-year-old store worker who is handling the books, told ABC News. They have recycled 75 tons — around 150,000 volumes — since last July, she said. As a child, Kibenko grew up in a Ukrainian speaking household but, more often than not, only had the choice to read in Russian.
“We do not burn books,” Kibenko told ABC News during a recent interview in Kyiv. “We just give them second life.”
The cultural battleground is not just symbolic. Witnesses from the Russian occupied territories say that, in schools, Ukrainian language books were thrown out and replaced by Russian ones as new curricula taught Putin’s view that Ukrainians and Russians are “one people.”
A report published in December by PEN America, a New York-based literary and human rights organization, said that “culture was on the frontlines” and Putin “seeks not only to control Ukrainian territory, but to erase Ukrainian culture and identity.”
-ABC News’ Guy Davies
Feb 24, 6:13 AM EST
US announces $2 billion more in military aid for Ukraine
The United States announced an additional $2 billion military aid package for Ukraine on Friday, as the Eastern European country marks the one-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The new aid package includes more missiles for Ukraine’s U.S.-supplied High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), additional 155mm artillery ammunition, more Switchblade one-way drones and other military equipment, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.
“One year into a war of aggression waged by a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, our allies and partners worldwide stand united and resolute,” U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said in a statement. “Putin’s reckless, illegal war is not just an all-out assault on Ukraine’s sovereignty and a historic threat to European security. It is also a direct attack on the system of rules, institutions, and laws that the world built at such great cost after World War II — a system that rejects aggression and respects the rights of all countries, big and small.”
The additional aid is being provided under the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) plan, meaning this equipment and artillery have to be made from scratch before being delivered, which will take time. This is different from the other aid packages that come from existing U.S. military stockpiles and get delivered faster.
With the new aid package, the Biden administration has now provided $31.8 billion in assistance to Ukraine since Russia’s war began on Feb. 24, 2022.
“Putin thought that Ukraine’s defenses would collapse, that America’s resolve would falter, and that the world would look the other way. He was wrong,” Lloyd said. “One year later, Ukraine’s brave defenders have not wavered, and neither has our commitment to support them for as long as it takes. Despite the Kremlin’s campaign of cruelty, the people of Ukraine have shown stunning bravery, skill, and fortitude. Today and every day, we stand by the courageous Ukrainians fighting to defend their country, and we mourn with those who have lost their loved ones in Moscow’s monstrous and unnecessary war.”
“Difficult times may lie ahead, but let us remain clear-eyed about what is at stake in Ukraine,” he added. “And let us remain united in purpose and in action — and steadfast in our commitment to ensure that a world of rules and rights is not replaced by one of tyranny and turmoil.”
-ABC News’ Luis Martinez
Feb 24, 5:37 AM EST
US announces fresh sanctions targeting Russia
The United States announced Friday a series of fresh sanctions against those who are supporting Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The White House said the new sanctions target more than 200 people and companies in Russia and other countries around the world. The Biden administration will also target a dozen Russian financial institutions as well as Russian officials and will restrict U.S. companies from exporting products to around 90 companies in Russia and other countries, including China, according to the White House.
The products that will be limited, such as semiconductor chips, are being used for “sanction evasion and backfill activities in support of Russia’s defense sector,” the White House said.
The U.S. will also increase tariffs on Russian metals, minerals and chemicals, which will eventually cost Moscow some $2.8 billion, according to the White House.
“These sanctions, export controls, and tariffs are part of our ongoing efforts to impose strong additional economic costs on Russia,” the White House said. “We will continue to work with our allies and partners to use all economic tools available to us to disrupt Russia’s ability to wage its war and degrade its economy over time.”
The announcement came on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine.
-ABC News’ Cheyenne Haslett
Feb 24, 5:05 AM EST
No end in sight as Russia’s war in Ukraine enters 2nd year
As tens of thousands of Russian troops lined up along Ukraine’s eastern and northern borders for “military exercises” last February, some international observers warned that Russia was about to do the unthinkable.
U.S. President Joe Biden had declassified intelligence in the weeks prior that showed an attack on Ukraine’s sovereignty was imminent. That intel was shared with allies, in an attempt to rally support and to stop the war, but the effort proved unsuccessful. The invasion began on Feb. 24, 2022.
The following four seasons have seen some of the bloodiest fighting on European soil in generations. Tens of thousands of Russian and Ukrainian troops have been killed. And Ukrainian civilians have been terrorized by missiles aimed at energy infrastructure, city centers and apartment buildings.
This month marks both the 9-year anniversary of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, which he illegally annexed in 2014, and the first anniversary of his full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The ends to which he’d go in his mission to capture Ukraine have become clear in the last year.
-ABC News’ Kevin Shalvey
Feb 24, 4:26 AM EST
Ukraine braces for Russian missile strikes on 1-year anniversary of war
There was a somber mood over Kyiv on Friday morning as the country marks the one-year anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion while bracing for a potential barrage of missile strikes.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, along with the country’s top general and the defense minister, took part in a military ceremony in Sofia Square in the historical center of the capital city. Zelenskyy and Poland’s president also visited a memorial wall for fallen Ukrainian soldiers.
Ukrainians are anticipating Russian missile strikes to mark the anniversary, amid warnings from the Ukrainian Air Force that there is a high risk of them. But so far it has been quiet, with no major strikes beyond routine shelling in northern and eastern Ukraine.
-ABC News’ Patrick Reevell
Feb 23, 3:19 PM EST
China pushes back against US claims it may supply weapons to Russia
The United States’ claims that they have intelligence showing China plans to provide weapons to Russia to assist in the ongoing war in Ukraine will impede the “political settlement of the Ukrainian crisis” and “will also further damage” China-US relations, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said during a press conference Thursday.
Wenbin called US claims of intelligence “nothing more than catching up on the wind, slandering and discrediting China.”
“Since the outbreak of the crisis in Ukraine, China has been steadfast in dialogue. While standing on peace, it has persuaded and introduced peace in its own way and played a constructive role in resolving the crisis in line with the situation,” Wenbin said.
-ABC News’ Ellie Kaufman and Karson Yiu
Feb 23, 2:37 PM EST
Eiffel Tower lit up in blue and yellow
The Eiffel Tower in Paris has been lit up in blue and yellow in honor of the one-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine.
-ABC News’ Alexandra Faul
Feb 23, 2:19 PM EST
13 million people have been displaced due to the war in Ukraine
A year into the war in Ukraine, 13 million people have been displaced, including nearly 8 million refugees across Europe and more than 5 million internally displaced in Ukraine, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement Thursday.
“The vast majority of refugees and internally displaced Ukrainians – some 77% and 79%, respectively – want to return home one day, however, only 12% of both refugees and [internally displaced people] plan to do so in the next three months,” the UNHCR said in a press release.
-ABC News’ Zoe Magee
Feb 22, 1:16 PM EST
Air raid sirens go off across Ukraine; 4 airstrikes in Kharkiv injure 2
Air raid sirens went off across Ukraine on Wednesday due to jets taking off in Belarus.
There were four strikes from Russian S-300 missiles on industrial infrastructure facilities in central Kharkiv, the head of Kharkiv’s Regional Military Administration Oleh Synegubov said.
Two men, ages 46 and 57, were injured from the attacks. They have both been hospitalized.
In Izyum, a city in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine, a 55-year-old civilian stepped on a “petal” mine. He was hospitalized with an explosive wound, Synehubov said.
One person was killed and another person was injured from fighting in the Donetsk region of Ukraine on Tuesday, the head of the Donetsk Regional Military Administration Pavlo Kyrylenko said.
-ABC News’ Natalia Kushnir
Feb 22, 11:24 AM EST
US believes Russia held failed ICBM test 2 days before Biden visited Ukraine
The United States believes that Russia carried out a test launch of an intercontinental missile on Saturday that appears to have failed, a U.S. official said.
Russia notified the U.S. ahead of the SARMAT ICBM launch, per agreements said the official.
The failed test launch would have taken place two days before President Joe Biden arrived in Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, on an unannounced trip, as he made his way to Poland to meet with NATO allies and to give a speech marking a year of war.
Ukrainian officials on Sunday publicly claimed Russia was preparing to stage large scale nuclear exercises including a launch to coincide with Biden’s trip.
-ABC News’ Luis Martinez and Patrick Reevell
Correction: This post initially stated the test happened on Monday when Biden was in Ukraine. It has been updated to reflect that the test actually happened on Saturday.
Feb 20, 5:39 AM EST
Biden in Kyiv says Putin was ‘dead wrong’
U.S. President Joe Biden said Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin was “dead wrong” when he started the war in Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
“When Putin launched his invasion nearly one year ago, he thought Ukraine was weak and the West was divided,” Biden said in a statement. “He thought he could outlast us. But he was dead wrong.”
The White House released the statement from Biden as he made an unannounced visit to the war-torn country, arriving in Kyiv on Monday morning.
“As the world prepares to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, I am in Kyiv today to meet with President Zelenskyy and reaffirm our unwavering and unflagging commitment to Ukraine’s democracy, sovereignty, and territorial integrity,” Biden said.
“Today, in Kyiv, I am meeting with President Zelenskyy and his team for an extended discussion on our support for Ukraine. I will announce another delivery of critical equipment, including artillery ammunition, anti-armor systems, and air surveillance radars to help protect the Ukrainian people from aerial bombardments,” he continued. “And I will share that later this week, we will announce additional sanctions against elites and companies that are trying to evade or backfill Russia’s war machine. Over the last year, the United States has built a coalition of nations from the Atlantic to the Pacific to help defend Ukraine with unprecedented military, economic, and humanitarian support — and that support will endure.”
Biden added: “I also look forward to traveling on to Poland to meet President Duda and the leaders of our Eastern Flank Allies, as well as deliver remarks on how the United States will continue to rally the world to support the people of Ukraine and the core values of human rights and dignity in the UN Charter that unite us worldwide.”
Feb 20, 5:21 AM EST
Biden makes surprise visit to Ukraine
U.S. President Joe Biden made an unannounced visit to war-torn Ukraine on Monday, arriving in Kyiv as Washington signals its ongoing support ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
Biden’s visit came ahead of a planned meeting with NATO allies in Poland. He is expected to give a speech at the Royal Castle Arcades in Warsaw on Tuesday evening to offer an appraisal of international support during the first year of the war and to address “how we will continue to stand with the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes,” White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement earlier this month.
Biden also plans to meet in Poland with leaders of the Bucharest Nine, a group of eastern NATO allies formed in 2015 in response to Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a dramatic visit to the United States in December, his first known international trip since the Russian invasion began in February 2022. Zelenskyy met with Biden at the White House in Washington, D.C., before addressing members of U.S. Congress on Capitol Hill.
Feb 19, 1:03 PM EST
Russia planning nuclear exercises to disrupt Biden’s Europe visit, Ukrainian military says
Ukraine’s military intelligence agency has accused Russia of planning to stage “large-scale nuclear exercises” to coincide with President Joe Biden’s visit to Europe next week.
The GUR said Russia is preparing for test launches of nuclear capable missiles from land and sea, the agency said in a statement Sunday on its official Telegram channel.
The GUR said a nuclear armed submarine has been placed on the “highest level” of combat readiness and that strategic bombers have been moved to a base in Tambov, Russia.
The agency claimed the exercises are intended disrupt President Joe Biden’s European trip.
“Such actions of the military and political leadership of the Russian Federation, in particular, are an attempt to hinder Joe Biden’s visit to Europe, which is scheduled for February 20-22, through direct nuclear blackmail and to weaken international support for Ukraine,” the GUR statement said.
– ABC News’ Patrick Reevell
Feb 18, 11:41 AM EST
Harris meets with British, Finnish, Swedish PMs
Vice President Kamala Harris met with the British, Finnish and Swedish prime ministers before departing Munich on Saturday.
Amid concerns in Europe that Republican lawmakers could dampen U.S. aid to Ukraine, the Finnish prime minister, Sanna Marin, thanked Harris for saying U.S. support for Ukraine would persevere domestic political differences.
Both Marin and Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, spoke with hope about joining NATO. But in recent days, there have been signals from NATO, the Finnish and the Swedish that perhaps they will not join at the same time as they had hoped due to continued Turkish objections over Swedish membership.
-ABC News’ Ben Gittleson
Feb 17, 3:41 PM EST
White House previews Biden trip to Poland
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby provided a preview Friday of President Joe Biden’s upcoming trip to Poland, saying the president’s main message will be continued support from the United States in the face of Russian aggression.
“On Tuesday evening, local time, President Biden will deliver remarks in Warsaw on how the United States has rallied the world to support the people of Ukraine as they defend their freedom and democracy. President Biden will make it clear that the United States will continue to stand with Ukraine, as you’ve heard him say many times, for as long as it takes,” Kirby said of Biden’s major planned address.
“As we approach the one-year mark since this invasion, we can proudly say that our support for Ukraine remains unwavering and our alliances and our international coalition in support of Ukraine remain stronger than ever,” he added.
Biden is scheduled to arrive in Poland on Tuesday morning and meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda. On Wednesday, he’ll meet with leaders from the so-called Bucharest Nine –Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia — which are nine NATO countries in Eastern Europe.
Kirby was asked about Biden meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, or traveling anywhere besides Warsaw, like the border town of Rzeszow, but he shot down both ideas.
“There is no meeting with President Zelenskyy scheduled for the trip right now,” he said. “Right now, the trip is going to be in Warsaw.”
Feb 17, 2:11 PM EST
Harris meets allies amid pressure over Ukraine aid
Vice President Kamala Harris met with the leaders of France and Germany Friday as part of a U.S. diplomatic push in Munich to show strong, continued support for Ukraine.
Questions lingering over the leaders in Munich include how long the West can maintain its support for Ukraine –- amid declining public and political support at home –- and how Ukraine will withstand the expected Russian offensive.
A White House official said that at the meetings, the vice president planned to “recognize the courage and resilience shown by the people of Ukraine; reaffirm the support of American people for Ukraine; commend the international community on the historic actions taken since February 2022; celebrate Transatlantic unity and clarity of purpose; reaffirm our security commitments to our European allies; and condemn Russia’s continued illegal and brutal actions while calling for accountability and justice.”
She also planned to discuss “relations with China and actions to address the climate crisis,” the official said.
Feb 17, 1:20 PM EST
Belarus ready to make Russian attack planes, president says at meeting with Putin
Belarus is ready to make Russian attack planes, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
“Belarus has been making up to a thousand components for MC-21 and Superjet 100 planes. There used to be repair plants, but now they also make component parts,” Lukashenko said.
“We are even ready to make it in Belarus with a little support from Russia,” Lukashenko said.
Feb 16, 5:28 PM EST
Ukrainian vice prime minister tells remaining civilians in Bakhmut to evacuate
Vice Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk called on the roughly 6,000 civilians still in Bakhmut to evacuate “immediately.”
Officials said they don’t want the people still in the city to put themselves and their children at risk and don’t want them to interfere with the Ukrainian army. Five civilians were killed and nine others were injured on Thursday, according to the vice prime minister.
“Frankly speaking, I am very surprised that 6,000 civilians are still working there,” Vereshchuk said in a statement.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Feb 16, 3:25 PM EST
Belarus will fight alongside Russia if it is attacked, president warns
Belarus would only join the war in Ukraine, fighting alongside Russia, if it is attacked, President Alexander Lukashenko told state-run Belta news agency.
“We don’t want a war. And in no case are we going to send our troops into the territory of Ukraine. Unless you commit aggression against the territory of Belarus from there. Here is my answer. It was given a long time ago,” Lukashenko said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed Lukashenko’s threat in an interview with the BBC.
“I hope [Belarus] won’t join [the war],” he said. “If it does, we will fight and we will survive.”
Allowing Russia to use Belarus as a staging post for an attack again would be a “huge mistake,” he added.
Russian forces launched part of their full-scale invasion from Belarus 12 months ago. They drove south toward Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, but were fought back and made to retreat within weeks, after suffering heavy casualties.
Lukashenko is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky and Tanya Stukalova
Feb 16, 3:11 PM EST
Zelenskyy rules out territorial deal with Putin in BBC interview
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has ruled out giving up any of his country’s territory in a potential peace deal with Russia.
In a BBC interview to mark a year since Russia’s full-scale invasion, he warned conceding land would mean Russia could “keep coming back,” while Western weapons would bring peace closer.
However, he does believe Ukrainian forces can keep resisting Russia’s advance until they are able to launch a counteroffensive — although he repeated his calls for more military aid from the West.
“Of course, modern weapons speed up peace. Weapons are the only language Russia understands,” Zelensky told the BBC.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Feb 16, 12:13 AM EST
Russian strikes hit infrastructure in Lviv, Ukrainians shoot down eight Russian missiles: Officials
An infrastructure object was hit in Lviv in the early morning hours of Thursday, the head of the Lviv Regional Military Administration, Maksym Kozytskyi, said on Telegram.
There were no casualties, and the fire from the impact has since been put out, Kozytskyi said.
Six Kalibr missiles were also shot down over the Mykolaiv region, and two Kalibr missiles were shot down over the Kherson region overnight, Odesa Military Administration spokesman Serhii Bratchuk posted on Telegram.
All eight of the missiles were fired from a Russian ship in the Black Sea, Bratchuk said in the post.
Feb 15, 2:48 PM EST
6 ‘reconnaissance’ balloons shot down over Kyiv
Authorities in Kyiv are investigating who owns six balloons that were in Ukraine’s airspace and what the balloons were doing over Kyiv. The balloons were shot down by Ukrainian air defense.
After a preliminary assessment, authorities think the balloons had intelligence gathering equipment.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
Feb 14, 11:43 AM EST
If Bakhmut falls, won’t have ‘strategic impact’ on Ukraine war: White House
White House spokesman John Kirby said during a briefing Tuesday that the U.S. could not “predict one way or the other” whether Bakhmut will fall to the Russians and if it does fall, “on what timeline.”
“We’re watching this every day, and it is certainly true that the Russians are continuing to make incremental progress there,” Kirby said. “Again, I can’t predict one way or the other whether it falls or it doesn’t fall or on what timeline. They have made incremental progress again in just the last 24, 48 hours.”
He added that the U.S. did not think Russia obtaining control of Bakhmut would have any “strategic impact” on either the overall war or even fighting in that part of the country.
The U.S. thinks Russia — and specifically the Wagner Group and its leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, which is doing much of the fighting for Bakhmut — wants to take over and benefit financially from gypsum and salt mines located in the area, Kirby said.
“Even if Bakhmut were to fall, it would not have a strategic impact on the overall war,” Kirby said. “I would go so far as to say it won’t even have, necessarily, a strategic impact on the fighting in that part of the country. We think one of the reasons why Prigozhin is so interested in Bakhmut is because there’s a gypsum mine there, and up in Soledar, there’s a salt mine. And it’s entirely possible that Mr. Prigozhin sees some economic benefit to him and his company to take Bakhmut and to take and hold Soledar.”
-ABC News’ Ben Gittleson
Feb 11, 9:43 AM EST
US surveillance data ‘crucial’: Ukrainian commander
Ukrainian Lt. Gen. Serhiy Nayev told ABC News in an interview that the U.S. provides “surveillance data,” allowing the Ukrainian Armed Forces to more accurately pinpoint Russian targets within Ukraine’s borders.
“This help is crucial for us,” he said.
Nayev said he was in “constant contact” with American generals stationed in other parts of Europe. An exchange of data between the Ukrainians and Americans helped the Ukrainian military to pinpoint targets using US-supplied HIMARS rocket systems.
“This work goes perfectly in real time,” he said.
-ABC News’ Tom Soufi Burridge, Dragana Jovanovic and Ale Pavone
Feb 10, 3:09 PM EST
Biden to visit Poland on eve of first anniversary of invasion of Ukraine
President Joe Biden will visit Poland on Feb. 20, on the eve of the first anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Biden will meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda as well as the leaders of the Bucharest Nine, a group of our eastern flank NATO allies, and he’ll deliver remarks to mark the one-year anniversary, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Friday.
“President Biden will deliver remarks ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia’s brutal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, addressing how the United States has rallied the world, to support the people of Ukraine, as they defend their freedom and democracy, and how we will continue to stand with the people of Ukraine for as long as it takes,” Jean-Pierre said.
-ABC News’ Ben Gittleson
Feb 10, 12:25 PM EST
Russian missile comes within 22 miles of Romanian border with Ukraine
Romania, a member of NATO, said Friday a Russian missile had come within 22 miles of its border but that it did not cross into the country’s territory, countering a claim made by the Ukrainian military.
“The Romanian Air Forces’ air surveillance system detected on Friday, February 10th, an aerial target launched by a Russian Federation’s ship, navigating in the Black Sea, nearby the Crimean Peninsula. The target is most likely a cruise missile, which flew over the air space of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova and reentered the Ukrainian air space without ever infringing Romania’s air space,” Romanian Defense Minister Angel Tîlvăr said in a statement Friday.
Ukrainian officials had said earlier Friday that two Russian missiles crossed into the airspace of Moldova and Romania before entering Ukraine and being directed at targets in the country.
“Several Russian missiles passed through the airspace of Moldova and Romania. These missiles are a challenge to NATO and collective security. This is terror that can and must be stopped,” Zelenskyy said Friday.
-ABC News’ Will Gretsky
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