Notes

Russia-Ukraine war at a glance: what we know on day 702 Russia
They worked at great risk to their personal freedom and their lives, and they did this right up to the end. And now, because of things like Visa and Mastercard pulling out of Russia, they can't even access their own funds. So some of them are still doing this work from abroad, but just completely cut off from their previous lives and any financial support. For Ukrainians, the looming first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of their country is a historic milestone within an ongoing tragedy of unprovoked bloodshed, one which seems to be escalating again. But https://gilliam-albrechtsen-4.technetbloggers.de/watch-diplomats-recall-moment-war-broke-out-at-peace-council ’s relentless destruction also poses a more existential question, one which fuels an urgent need to resist and prevail. A short respite came with the country’s independence, but then, in 2014, Vladimir Putin’s aggressions began in Crimea, and carried on afterward in the Donbas.


The Ukrainian General Staff says its forces have repelled Russian attacks near Avdiivka itself, as well as from settlements to the north west, south west, and directly west of the town. Moscow has claimed its forces have taken control of the village of Tabaivka in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region. Though dissent has been effectively outlawed, thousands of people have taken the risk to express their opposition to the invasion.

Maps: Tracking the Russian Invasion of Ukraine
People I met in the park wondered whether the statue had been the intended target, or whether the missile had been meant to hit a nearby government installation, and been downed by an air-defense missile? On the next block, fragments had struck the façade of a neoclassical building that once housed Ukraine’s first sovereign Congress, during a previous, short-lived attempt at independence, just before the country’s absorption by the Soviet Union. The hits on two symbols of Ukrainian sovereignty struck many as not coincidental.


Meanwhile Russia's currency, the rouble, fell to an all-time low against the dollar and the euro. "People were out on the streets last night in this city - they were waving the Ukrainian flag. They said this was their land. They were going nowhere," she reported. Russia has begun a large-scale military attack on Ukraine, its southern neighbour, on the orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He said Russia was a "proud nation, and we love our country. We have not any other motherland, and we must protect it." Tyab asked the lawmaker, Popov, it the invasion had been worth it, given the loss of life and the international condemnation and sanctions Russia is now experiencing.

World condemns Putin
In recent days, US President Joe Biden made a significant visit to the capital Kyiv, showing his full support for Ukraine and President Zelensky. When they first invaded, Russia's bigger and more powerful army was expected to have a much greater impact, but so far, the Ukrainian forces have managed to push them back in lots of areas. It is very hard to measure the total impact the war has had, but there have been many casualties and parts of the country will need totally rebuilding. However, power lines are often damaged during air strikes and electricity blackouts are common. For millions of children, staying in their home towns was not possible due to the Russian invasion. One year later, the war is still going on, and millions of children have been affected, with homes, public facilities and school buildings destroyed.

Western powers are unwilling to send troops to fight in the conflict but have sought to make the Kremlin’s actions unsustainable with tough economic punishments. So at a recent gathering in Vilnius, a slogan on stage called on those abroad to "be brave, like Ukraine", but the mood was subdued with a hint of helplessness. "Iran's allies and proxies have been undeterred by the huge show of US force in the region - if anything the warships and aircraft carriers have acted as a magnet for attack. US President Joe Biden said Mr Putin had "chosen a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering".
This could see states like Poland and the Baltics decide to aid Ukraine on their own, which "might leave NATO's eastern front vulnerable and cause a crisis within the EU and European NATO". "The nightmare scenario would be that the states close to Russia double down on aid to Ukraine while those farther west decide to force a deal on Putin's terms. Then Europe itself could fracture," he says. European countries have largely outsourced much of their military capacity and thinking on strategy and security to the States through NATO. A senior European Union official has denied that member states are discussing financial coercion to force Hungary to agree on financing for Ukraine.


Hundreds of thousands of Russians have left Russia, including me and my BBC Russian colleagues. But for the majority who have stayed in Russia, life outwardly is pretty much the same as it always was. An unspoiled and peaceful part of the city, for me it embodies Russia's complex present and past. "I think all we can do now as Russians is say sorry - and protest against Vladimir Putin," Anastasia says. "Because Putin personally is the reason for what's going on. Why so many people are dying." As well as the call-up, there is his threat of annexing more Ukrainian land and another nuclear warning for the West.

A senior European Union official has denied that member states are discussing financial coercion to force Hungary to agree on financing for Ukraine. Ukraine has continued ground operations on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River with heavy battles reported to be ongoing in the area around the village of Krynky, about 30km (19 miles) from the city of Kherson. In a panel I moderated, the Ukrainian historian and author Olena Stiazhkina began her remarks by expressing her gratitude to the Ukrainian armed forces for their defense of the homeland. "We need independent media to stop the war and then try and improve life in Russia at least to a degree." Tyab asked the lawmaker, Popov, it the invasion had been worth it, given the loss of life and the international condemnation and sanctions Russia is now experiencing.
On 24 February 2022, Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered his army to forcefully cross the border and invade neighbouring Ukraine. The situation in Ukraine is often fast moving and it is likely there will be times when there have been changes not reflected in the maps. To indicate which parts of Ukraine are under control by Russian troops we are using daily assessments published by the Institute for the Study of War with the American Enterprise Institute's Critical Threats Project.


Here's my website: https://gilliam-albrechtsen-4.technetbloggers.de/watch-diplomats-recall-moment-war-broke-out-at-peace-council