Reflections on War: A Year in Ukraine

A year ago, Russia launched the biggest war in Europe since World War II. Russian tanks began to enter Ukraine, after which many civilians took refuge in basements, and others fled to the borders of their country. Governments around the world have imposed tough sanctions on Moscow in a – so far unsuccessful – attempt to pressure President Vladimir Putin to back down from his offensive. Still, Ukrainian armed forces resisted, regaining control of large swaths of occupied territory and repelling Russian attempts to advance eastward, where heavy fighting continues.

All this has caused devastating suffering: thousands of people have lost their lives and more than 8 million Ukrainians have fled abroad. The economic effects continue to be felt around the world, from Europe’s hasty mobilization for new energy sources to rising grain prices in Africa.

During the war, Associated Press reporters were on the ground in Ukraine and Russia, providing the same factual and eyewitness coverage that has defined the PA throughout our 177-year history. This is a sample of his exceptional and award-winning work, which would continue for the duration of the war.

– Julie Pace, AP Executive Director

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REFLECT ON A YEAR

“We are all here. Our soldiers are here, the citizens of our country are all here to protect our independence.” – Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine

BATTLEFIELD CONTROL

Russia invaded Ukraine after Moscow stationed troops for months along its neighbor’s borders and after last-minute diplomatic moves by Western governments to try to avert conflict. Russian officials denied US warnings that an invasion was imminent, while insisting they would continue to support armed separatists in eastern Ukraine and block attempts by the former Soviet republic to join NATO.

In a televised address, Putin said Ukraine was an integral part of Russian heritage. He openly questioned the country’s right to exist, after three decades earlier it had declared itself independent. The United States and its allies — suspicious of Putin’s motives after his annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, and eight years of fighting in Ukraine’s Donbass region between Ukrainian forces and Moscow-backed separatists — reinforced their military presence in Eastern Europe and pledged to protect NATO members located near Ukraine against any possible aggression.

LIVES CHANGED

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has reached the outskirts of Kiev: in the quiet suburbs of Bucha and Irpin, near the capital’s airport, half an hour’s drive from the city. Before the war, people from kyiv used to go there on weekends to visit a steakhouse or a shopping mall. Now Bucha’s name is linked to the brutality of Russia’s advance and he is the subject of an international war crimes investigation after the discovery of hundreds of mass graves following the withdrawal of Russian forces . Three childhood friends Oleksii, Yurii and Vadym grew up in Bucha and fell in love there. They all joined the resistance to fight the Russians and their families scattered across Europe with millions of other refugees. Within months, Oleksii and Yurii had lost their lives in heavy fighting in the east. The former’s wife and the latter’s fiancée, who regularly visit their graves, tell the story of their loss and their war-torn lives.

THE INVISIBLE GALLERY

From frontlines and bomb-damaged towns to families torn apart by conflict, Associated Press photographers have documented the enormous cost in life and far-reaching impact of the invasion of Ukraine. But the public never saw much of his outstanding work. Advances in photographic technology and faster data connections have given the world a window into events as they happen. But as an overwhelming number of images are generated, many of them are never selected for publication. This series of selected photographs is part of a larger gallery of never-before-seen images – deemed to be meaningful, informative and visually stunning – which have been chosen by the photographers for public display to commemorate the first anniversary of the invasion of the Ukraine on February 24.

ECONOMIC IMPACT

The global economy continues to suffer the painful repercussions of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with shortages of grain, fertilizer and energy. European economies are struggling to avoid falling into recession at a time when the worst energy price shock in decades and supply uncertainty are causing global difficulties. The International Monetary Fund has cut growth expectations for this year and 2022, the equivalent of a $1 trillion lost output.

Rising inflation means that households in developed countries have lost income, while facing rising bills and loan repayments. Poor countries already struggling with high food prices have been hit even harder, adding to the disruption caused by the pandemic, halting global progress in lifting millions out of poverty.

World oil prices rose immediately after the outbreak of war. In June, fears that the market was short of a large percentage of Russian crude drove prices up. Those gains were followed by declines in August, fueled by fears of a global economic slowdown and a bigger-than-expected drop in Russian output.

THE ROAD AHEAD

With no peace deal in sight, Ukraine and Russia are emerging from a winter stalemate determined to fight for diametrically opposed strategic goals. Kyiv wants to force Moscow out of captured territory to respect internationally recognized borders, and its high-morale forces are now equipped with more powerful offensive weapons they received from the West. The Ukrainian government faces an enormous challenge to train operators in the use of the new high-tech equipment – and update its entire army – in a fraction of the time it normally takes. With a vast resource advantage, Russia wants to keep its former Soviet neighbor in its orbit of influence and prevent it from joining NATO. Moscow controls almost a fifth of Ukraine’s territory, including Crimea, much of the Donbass industrial region in the east and large areas in the south, where Europe’s largest nuclear power plant is located. But the Russian army has struggled to regroup after a year in which it suffered heavy losses and humiliating setbacks, including having to withdraw from large swaths of occupied territory driven out by Ukrainian counter-offensives. Military analysts say fighting will continue until one side has gained enough advantage to impose conditions in the negotiations. As the conflict enters its second year, they speculate that Ukraine could push to cut off Russia’s access to Crimea or that Moscow could attempt to overwhelm Kiev’s defenses by reopening a second front from Belarus.