What is going on with the war in Ukraine
March 14, 2022
What is going on?
Early in the morning of February 24, Russian president Vladmir Putin declared war on Ukraine and invaded the country early that morning. Throughout the first day of invasion, there were bombings and rocket attacks all throughout Ukraine coming from Russia, even targeting the capitol.
Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, declared martial law in the country of Ukraine and put the country under a strict curfew. Many Ukrainian citizens are seeking refuge in neighboring countries, but the Ukrainian Government ordered men 18-60 to stay and fight in the army for Ukraine.
President Joe Biden reached out to President Zelenskyy and offered refuge in America and Zelenskyy reportedly responded “I need ammunition, not a ride” and has been on the front lines with fellow Ukrainians fighting for his country.
Russia’s biggest target at the moment is the Ukrainian President. Russia wants to weaken Ukraine by destroying them politically by taking down their head of state.
Russian tanks are pushing into the Capitol in order to assault the city. Their hope is to capture the Ukrainian president and force him to sign a peace treaty ending the war.
So far the death toll is in favor of Ukraine. More Russian soldiers have lost their lives than Ukranians and citizens are stepping up to help in the war effort by capturing and interrogating Russian soldiers.
The History/Why?
The conflict starts with a long history between Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine was once part of the Soviet Union until gaining their independence in 1991, following the disbandment of the Soviet Union.
After the split Ukraine was publicly considering applying for NATO. NATO is an agreement between several European countries and the United States to have a joint military union. So in the instance that one of those countries gets attacked, then everyone apart of the NATO alliance would defend that country.
This public consideration puts Putin at unease because opposes his bordering country being part of a unified military. He wants to keep his bordering countries weak.
Protests in Russia.
Anti-war protests have broken out in almost 50 Russian cities including Moscow, Tyumen, St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and more.
Russian police are overwhelmed by these protests and are arresting mass amounts of people at random and have even become violent with protestors. Almost 3,000 Russians have been arrested for protesting so far.
The crowds are chanting “No to war” and carrying banners and posters advocating against the conflict.
Ways to help
The best way to help Ukraine from abroad is to donate. The following website offers ways to donate and help aid Ukraine in fighting for their freedom and safety.
Another way to help, is to look at trusted resources and to fact check information before reposting. Russia thrives from internet attacks and spreading misinformation and propaganda which can be extremely believeable. Some trustworthy websites are the Kyiv Post and the Kyiv Independent.
