A Brief History of the War in Ukraine and What Happens Now?

Earlier this year, the winter Olympics ended on February 22nd. Russia began its invasion of Ukraine only two days later on February 24th. The Russo-Ukrainian War had officially begun. For some, this was an unpleasant surprise, for others, an unavoidable catastrophe decades in the making.

Russia has support from Belarus, China, Cuba, Armenia, and several others. Ukraine’s supporters include all the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) countries, as well as the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, and more. This conflict has now been ongoing for over 120 days.

Three to five thousand civilians including hundreds of children have lost their lives within the last three months. Around five thousand have been injured. Several thousand Ukrainian soldiers have died, as well as fifteen to twenty thousand Russian soldiers. If you are wondering why this is happening, let’s take a historical look.

Ukraine gained independence on January 26, 1918 from on-again, off-again Russian control beginning in the mid 1400’s. Starving people in Austria and Germany forced Russian troops out so they could get food and provisions. Their brand new freedom was fleeting. Immediately after, neighboring countries Poland and Russia started vying for ownership of the newly independent Ukraine.

After a civil war, Russia ended up with two-thirds of Ukraine and Poland won a third. In 1922, Ukraine became the Ukrainian Socialist Soviet Republic as part of the USSR, or the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In the beginning, Ukraine liked the idea of benefits from being part of a group of allies known as the Soviet Union, but that excitement quickly faded.

Bad news was broken that the Soviet Union was a ploy to make one large dictatorship, but freedom wouldn’t come again for Ukraine until several decades passed. The Soviet Union was officially dissolved in 1991, shortly after Leonid Kravchuk won the presidential election. His successor Leonid Kuchma gave Ukraine the great gift of democracy. In early 2014, Russia invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea.

Right now, Ukraine needs significant help through acceptance into the European Union, which offers numerous economical benefits. That desire may be difficult to fulfill, as Ukraine’s previous president Viktor Yanukovych declined to sign a European Union agreement.

The US media coverage of the war in Ukraine is relentless, but how do regular citizens feel about these developments? Almost 60% of Americans are concerned about other countries being invaded by Russia, a quarter are somewhat concerned, and 15% aren’t worried.

In mid-March, the United States announced a $1.5 trillion spending budget with nearly 1% going to Ukraine aid. Ukraine was given $13.6 billion. Over a third of Americans think the aid amount is fine, and just under a third think not enough aid is being given. 22% of Americans are unsure about the amount, and 12% think 1% is too much.

If you are like many others, you are wondering when the war in Ukraine will end. Will Ukraine be back under Russian control? The answer isn’t simple, and no one can say with complete certainty. The end guestimate is based on several factors including war models, information analysis, and how long Russia’s roughly 1,200 missiles will last.

Russia itself has announced the war’s end to be September or October of 2022. People are dying, starving, and other countries are being negatively affected economically. Fingers crossed for an immediate end, but another 100 days seems likely. For now, the world is watching and only time will tell.

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