TIMELINE: Ukraine-Russia 2022

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (UATV) —  Ukraine declared independence from Moscow in early 1990, after the fall of the Soviet Union. More than 30 years later, residents fear for their lives as neighboring Russia invades the Eastern European country.

This is a timeline of the 2022 crisis:

Feb. 24, Thursday: Russian troops launched a military assault on Ukraine with explosions starting before dawn in the capital city of Kyiv. Russian President Vladimir Putin called it a “special military operation.”

Feb. 25, Friday: At least 137 people have been killed and hundreds have been wounded. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mobilized its military for 90 days.

Feb. 26, Saturday: Heavy fighting continues south of Kyiv. The Ukrainian military said it had repelled a Russian attack on an army base located on Peremohv Avenue, a main road in Kyiv, Reuters reported.

Feb. 27, Sunday: A gas pipeline outside Kharkiv was reported to have been blown up by a Russian attack. An oil depot in Kriachky ignited after being hit by missiles, reported by BBC.

Several Russian banks were removed from SWIFT. (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications, SWIFT, founded in 1973, is a secure messaging system for International payments. The Belgian member-owned co-op has 11,000 banks, from 200 countries/territories). Turkey declared a state of war exists in the Black Sea, giving it permission to seize Russian Navy ships. The EU banned Russian aircraft from its airspace, reported by WSJ.

Feb. 28, Monday: The timesofIsrael.com reported that the initial round of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia ended with no resolution.

March 1, Tuesday: Independence Square in central Kharkiv, was allegedly struck by a Russian missile, killing at least 10 people. Five more people were killed when a Russian missile struck a Kyiv television tower.

March 2, Wednesday: Russian troops seized the city of Kherson (pop. 290,000). The southern port city is on the Black Sea and the Dnieper River. This is the first city to fall into Russian control.

March 3, Thursday: More than 1 million people have left Ukraine after one week of Russian attacks. “I have worked in refugee emergencies for almost 40 years, and rarely have I seen an exodus as rapid as this one,” United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said.

March 4, Friday: Russia captured a portion of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. There was no release of radiation, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Russia created a new law that would imprison a person for 15 years who spreads false rumors of the country’s military activity.

March 5, Saturday: The U.S. State Department issued a travel advisory for U.S. citizens to leave Russia immediately. Another attempt for a cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine failed. Ukrainian President Zolovdymyr Zelensky asked the U.S. to ban imports, oil and gas.

March 6, Sunday: The United Nations reports 364 civilians have been killed since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, nearly 800 have been injured. A cease-fire has not been reached between the European countries.

March 7, Monday: President Joe Biden held a video call with the leaders of France, Germany and Britain, according to a White House notice posted on Twitter by VOA’s WH bureau chief. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba about “unwavering support for the people of Ukraine and ongoing efforts to stop Putin’s war of choice.” The World Health Organization set up a warehouse with medical supplies in Lviv, Ukraine. Some Russian oligarchs are worried that they’ve lost billionaire status because of the sanctions set by Western countries, according to a report by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

March 8, Tuesday: “President Biden signed an executive order to ban the import of Russian oil, liquefied natural gas, and coal to the United States.  This is a significant action with widespread bipartisan support that will further deprive President Putin of the economic resources he uses to fund his needless war of choice,” according to a WH press briefing. The ban is immediate and new purchases of Russian energy will be blocked.

March 9, Wednesday: A maternity facility and children’s hospital was bombed in Mariupol. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called this a direct strike by Russia. Zelensky said, “children are under the wreckage.” The U.N. reports 2.1 million Ukrainians have left the country for neighboring countries.

March 10, Thursday: Wall Street bank Goldman Sachs is the first major bank to pull out of Russia.

March 11, Friday: U.S. President Joe Biden said Russia will pay a “severe price” if it uses chemical weapons in Ukraine. Biden began his speech calling the situation a “merciless assault” by Russia’s president and called to end “normal” trade relations with Russia. The announcement has the support of the Group of Seven nations and EU leaders.

March 12, Saturday: The U.N. reports 2.4 million Ukrainians have left the country because of Russia’s invasion.

March 13, Sunday: Award-winning American journalist and former Visiting Professor for the Center of Ethics, Brent Renaud, 50, was shot and killed when Russians troops opened fire on him in Irpin, Ukraine, located in the country’s northern region just outside of Kiev. Gov. Asa Hutchinson issued a statement via Twitter.  The Little Rock, Arkansas, native was a New York Times contributor and not on assignment on behalf of the agency, according to NYT, but was working for Time.

March 14, Monday: More than $40 million has been allocated by the United Nation’s in emergency funds.

March 15, Tuesday: A Fox News veteran photojournalist was killed Monday while reporting in Ukraine, Fox News Media confirmed.  Pierre Zakrzewski was with Fox correspondent Benjamin Hall, who was injured, when their car came under attack. A producer for a Russian state television newscast interrupted a live newscast. Marina Ovsyannikova held a hand written message that denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. More than 3 million Ukrainians have left the country, according to International Organization for Migration (IOM).

March 16, Wednesday: A “humanitarian no fly zone” will not be created in Ukraine, according to NATO nations, something Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been requesting. U.S President Joe Biden is expected to announce an additional $800 million in aid to Ukraine, for a total of $1 billion.

March 17, Thursday: Russia said it has made a $117 million debt payment but the funds have yet to be applied. The money used to make the payments came from the country’s frozen assets.  Russia has a $2 billion payment due early April. The US, UK, France, Ireland, Norway and Albania – have requested an open session on Ukraine before the United Nations is expected to vote Friday on a Russian humanitarian resolution.

March 18, Friday: The outskirts of Lviv, a city located in western Ukraine, was hit by Russian missiles. More than 3 million Ukrainians have left the country and 6.5 million have bee displaced, according to the U.N.’s International Organization for Migration, President Biden spoke with Chinese leader Xi Jinping about consequences if China provides “material assistance” to Russia. President Putin made an appearance at a Moscow stadium and praised Russian forces for their efforts in the “special military operation” in Ukraine.

March 19, Saturday:Russia admits it launched hypersonic missiles, which travel 5 times the speed of sound/1 to 5 miles per second, to destroy a Ukrainian ammunition warehouse. The warehouse was located underground in the village of Delyatin, Ivano-Frankivsk region,” Ukraine officials said. The village is about 300 miles west-southwest of Kiev.

March 20, Sunday: Russia has killed 847 civilians, including 64 children, since the start of the invasion, according to the Ukraine Civilian Casualty update.

March 21, Monday: The White House met with a cross-section of business leaders, including CEOs from oil producer ConocoPhillips, refinery giant Marathon Petroleum, ExxonMobil, JPMorgan, Bank of America, Land O’Lakes and Cargill, to discuss the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

March 22, Tuesday: Ukraine refuses to give up the city of Mariupol to Russia. Should that happen, it would be considered a big, strategic, gain for Russia because Mariupol is a port city.

March 23, Wednesday: Ukraine’s military goes on the offensive and attempts to take back areas where Russia has infiltrated. Russian forces have been removed from Makariv, according to the Ukraine Defense Ministry. The town, about 30 miles west from Kiev, with a population of about 9,500. This is a travel day for President Biden. He’s headed to Belgium where he’ll meet with other NATO nations, in Brussels, to discuss the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The summit will include all 30 NATO leaders. The U.N. reports 3.6 million Ukrainians have left the country. The US government has formally declared that members of the Russian armed forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement Wednesday. (Source: CNN).

March 24, Thursday: It’s been one month since Russia invaded Ukraine. The U.S President is in Brussels meeting with 30 NATO leaders — G7 emergency meeting — resulting in additional sanctions against Russia. The U.S. has agreed to accept 100,000 Ukrainian refugees. more than 3.7 million have left Ukraine, according to the U.N. Kiev Navy claims it destroyed a Russian Naval ship.

March 25, Friday: NATO, G7 and EU (a rare triple summit) promises more humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine.  The U.S. announced a plan to help the EU to rely less on Russia oil.

March 26, Saturday: A Ukrainian fuel depot in Lviv was hit by Russian forces ahead of President Biden’s speech in neighboring country of Poland. Biden told a crowd in Poland that the ruble is now rubble and a regime change is needed in Russia. Many pundits weighed in that the U.S. president over-stepped his boundaries with the “change is needed” comment. The White House released a statement explaining the comment and not calling for regime change. President Putin did not comment on the remark.

March 27, Sunday: Ukrainian officials played down the chances of a major breakthrough with Russia at the talks in Istanbul, Turkey. Nearly 4 million Ukrainians have left the country since the Russian invasion started on February 24, 2022. More than 2.2 million relocated to Poland and more than 500,000 went to Romania, according to the U.N. data tracker.

March 28, Monday: A volley of Russian missiles continue to fall in Ukraine, ahead of talks between the two countries. A video published by a pro-Russian news outlet shows the southern Ukrainian city of Melitopol has been controlled by Russia since mid-March. The city is between Mariupol and Russian occupied Kherson.

March 29, Tuesday: Talks between Ukraine and Russia top brass did not happen today. Russia stated their plan was to scale back attack on tow northern cities in Ukraine, but it appears the opposite happened. Instead, the U.S. Defense Department warned that Russian forces might be moving to reposition and regroup for attacks elsewhere in Ukraine. (Source: NPR).

March 30, Wednesday: The U.N. refugee agency reports more than 4 million Ukrainians have left the country. Many are in neighboring countries Poland, Romania, Moldova, Hungary and Slovakia. More than 350,000 Russians have left their country, according to U.N. estimates. Germany and Austria are in their first phase of a natural gas emergency plan. By the end of the year, Poland plans to ban all oil, gas and coal imports from Russia.

March 31, Thursday: Ukrainian President Zelensky accuses Russia of genocide and claims more than 400 bodies have been found in towns that are no longer under Russian control. Humanitarian convoys were stopped and raided by Russian forces, according to Ukraine’s top brass.

April 1, Friday: Ukraine won’t confirm/deny reports that it was involved in an oil depot blast in the Russian city of Belgorod. This is the first time Russia has been struck by Ukraine. Russian forces leave Chernobyl due to possible radiation exposure.

April 2, Saturday: Ukraine remains on high alert even though it appears Russian forces are withdrawing from Kiev. A missing Ukrainian photojournalist, missing since mid-March, was found shot to death in a village north of Kiev. An investigation is underway. A prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine, the largest thus far, with 86 soldiers returning to their native land.

April 3, Sunday: Images from Ukraine are trickling in now that Russian forces have scaled back their presence. The graphic photos show bodies strewn on streets. Nearly a dozen mayors have been kidnapped by Russian forces.

April 4, Monday: The Ukrainian city of Mariupol is “on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe,” with over 100,000 people still requiring evacuation, Mayor Vadym Boichenko said in a televised press briefing. President Joe Biden called Russian President Vladimir Putin “a war criminal” who should be brought to trial after gruesome images from the town of Bucha were released.

April 5, Tuesday: President Zelenskyy spoke to the United Nations Security Council asking the agency to do more to stop Russia’s aggressive actions. The EU bans Russian coal in a new sanction measure.

April 6, Wednesday: The U.S. votes to remove Russia’s trade status and bans oil and gas imports. UN General Assembly will vote Thursday on whether to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council.

April 7, Thursday: Russian troops are moving toward the eastern edge of Ukraine — the regions of Donestsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv. U.S and European allies met in Brussels. The UN member states voted to suspend Russia from the Human Rights Council after allegations of atrocities committed by Russian soldiers in Ukraine.

April 8, Friday:  A Russian missile attacked a Ukrainian train station and killed at least 50 people, five were children, and wounded nearly 100 others. The missile struck at 6:31 p.m.

April 9, Saturday: Russian forces are regrouping and plan to attack eastern Ukraine, according to Ukrainian officials and President Volodymyr Zelensky.

April 10, Sunday: Ukraine’s president said the country is “ready” for a full on Russian offensive in the eastern part of the country. Russia has appointed a new general to direct the war after troops failed to take Kyiv.

April 11, Monday: Russian forces continue to bomb eastern regions of Ukraine. Russia’s defense ministry touts that is has destroyed S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems that belonged to Ukraine. The UN reports more than 4.5 million people have left the country. Mariupol’s mayor said more than 10,000 people have been killed in the port city due to the Russian siege.

April 12, Tuesday: Russian forces are moving south in the eastern part of Ukraine, headed toward the town of Izium.

April 13, Wednesday: Russian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk, a close associate of President Putin, is in Ukrainian custody. Medvedchuk is Russia’s highest pro-Kremlin politician.

April 14, Thursday: Ukraine officials claim to have badly damaged a Russian warship. The Moskva, named after the country’s capital city, was considered Russia’s flagship vessel. Its crew was evacuated from the ship.

April 15, Friday: Russian forces continue to deploy reinforcements to eastern Ukraine. Ukraine President Zelenskyy, in his nightly video address, said, “The next package of sanctions against Russia must include an abandonment of Russian oil.” (Source: VOA). Zelenskyy told CNN that between 2,500 to 3,000 Ukrainian troops have died.

April 16, Saturday: Russian forces returned to Ukraine’s. capital city, Kiev, and attacked with missiles and bombings.

April 17, Sunday: Ukrainian forces are in the southern port of Mariupol — fighting and continue to protect the city.

April 18, Monday: A new phase of large-scale offensive operations in eastern Ukraine is underway by Russian forces. The city of Donbas, Ukraine is now targeted by Russia, according to Ukrainian officials.

April 19, Tuesday: Ukraine’s lead negotiator said there is no date for when talks will continue between Ukraine and Russia.

April 20, Wednesday: Fighting intensifies by Russian forces in eastern Ukraine — in the area of Donbas. Russia said it had conducted a first test launch of its Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile, a new and long-awaited addition to its nuclear arsenal which President Vladimir Putin said would make Moscow’s enemies stop and think. (Source: VOA).

When news that the guided-missile cruiser Moskva had sunk off Crimea reached Tamara Grudinina, nearly 9,000 kilometers to the east, she sent a text message to a number belonging to the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet asking about the whereabouts of her son, Sergei, 21, a sailor serving on the fleet’s flagship. She said she received a response: “Your son has gone missing. We are sorry.” (Source: VOA).

April 21, Thursday: President Biden authorized a Presidential Drawdown of security assistance valued at up to $800 million.

April 22, Friday: U.N. reports more than 11 million people have left Ukraine.