It’s Been One Year Since The War in Ukraine Started – So What’s Changed?

(Image via bing.com)

Photography Manager: Brendan Flaherty

Ukraine was invaded a year ago today, and the war shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. The invasion officially started on February 24th, 2022.

It has been a year of death, destruction, and, ultimately, unnecessary violence.

According to the ongoing Wikipedia page regarding the war, the conflicts really started much earlier in 2014.

It was 9 years ago when Russia annexed Crimea, and pro-Russian rebels made a move to take control of Ukraine. This, of course, ended in a light truce between the two factions.

Although it wasn’t all that peaceful, for some time, there was the idea of peace and that maybe, finally, Ukraine could be its own independent country.

Then, tragedy struck, and the Russian forces were lined up outside the borders of Ukraine, seemingly ready for a large-scale invasion.

So after a year of an ongoing war, what’s changed?

Has either side shown any sign of slowing down?

Could there be any signs of peace in the future?

And who is actually winning this war?

Starting at the very beginning of it all, the initial invasion into Ukrainian territory, Russian forces entered on February 24th. They started to receive unanticipated resistance from the Ukrainian people living there, and thus, the fighting began.

The current president of Ukraine, President Zelenskyy, has stayed with his people in full support of the defense of his country. He has shown up to many events and has worked hard to give his people hope in knowing their leader is right with them.

As this war has gone on, there has been much looking into the leader of Ukraine and just what kind of man he is.

Zelenskyy was also involved in a TV show called: “Servant of the People,” featuring the current president and his efforts to get to the position he currently holds.

During the beginning stages of the war, there was a large push into the heart of Ukrainian territory to capture the capital by the Russians. But, resistance to the invasion quickly increased, and there were large pushbacks to the Russian advance.

The thought of a quick Russian win was quickly diminished, and the fighting would continue on.

Thirty-six days after the initial invasion, it was reported that there was a massacre that took place in Bucha, a city in Ukraine. About 458 people, all of varying ages, were executed by Russians with their wrists tied together.

During the second phase of the war, many battles ensued, ever-changing the scales of the war.

Many towns and people that were caught in the crossfire between the two warring countries found themselves in a very dangerous place. With constant bombardment from Russian artillery, it was unlikely that anything or anyone would survive.

Many news outlets would report about the ongoing bombardments and the saddening amount of civilian casualties that were inflicted.

Russia was not only being pushed back by Ukraine but also by all the countries that stood with the nation. It was through this conflict that Russia received much fallout, which forced many companies to cease trade with them, such as Apple, BP, and Shell.

Coming back to present time, the war has been seemingly stuck where neither side seems to be gaining any sort of significant ground.

In a visual aid provided by The Guardian, one can see just how much the Russian forces attempted to seize at the very beginning of the war.

The Guardian went on to say that the Russians have lost at least one-fifth of the original amount of land claimed at the beginning invasion.

In a recent speech, President Biden addressed the Nations of the World to stay committed to aiding the defense of Ukraine whilst also mentioning the horrible acts that Putin has carried out.

Putin very quickly retorted, saying, “they were the ones who started the war.”

Although, as Canadian physiatrist and WW1 vet Brock Chisholm once said, “no one wins a war. It is true, there are degrees of loss, but no one wins.”

This is an accurate quote to relate to this war and all others. Because ultimately, there is nothing but pain and loss after the conclusion of a war.

Whether Ukraine or Russia comes out on top, there will be nothing gained for either side, just a lot of dead soldiers / civilians and a lot of mourning families.

The war will continue to go on until we can finally realize that this conflict is detrimental to us all. We need to find ways to come to a peaceful resolution instead of just pointing fingers and blaming each other for who started what.

We may always hope for a peaceful resolution to the conflicts through talks or a treaty of sorts. Only time will tell which side is willing to fight to the bitter end and which is doomed to fail.