Russo-Ukrainian War

This article is about Russian military intervention in post-Euromaidan Ukraine. For the secession crisis in Crimea and subsequent Russian annexation, see 2014 Crimean crisis. For the secession crisis in eastern Ukraine, see 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine.

Russo-Ukrainian War
Part of the aftermath of the 2014 Ukrainian revolution
Map of the conflict in Crimea and Donbass
Date 26 February (de facto), 1 March (authorised) 2014 – ongoing (10 years, 8 months, 2 weeks and 4 days) Location Ukraine (Crimean Peninsula, Donetsk Oblast, Luhansk Oblast, Kherson Oblast); Black Sea (Sea of Azov); Russian Federation (Rostov Oblast). Status Unmarked Russian troops take over Crimea, seize military units, fortify near Chongar, Kherson Oblast. Russian military buildup on Russian-Ukrainian border NATO condemns Russian involvement, plans Rapid Trident military exercises in Ukraine, reinforces members west of Ukraine. US, Ukraine accuse Russia of orchestrating unrest in eastern and southern Ukraine Russian intervention in war in Donbass Territorial changes Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation Occupation of borderstrip from Novoazovsk to Luhansk
Belligerents
Russia Republic of Crimea Novorossiya Donetsk People's Republic Lugansk People's Republic	Ukraine
Commanders and leaders
Vladimir Putin Sergey Shoygu Valery Gerasimov Igor Sergun Aleksandr Vitko Sergey Aksyonov Denis Berezovsky	Petro Poroshenko Ihor Tenyukh Mykhailo Kutsyn Serhiy Hayduk (P.O.W.)
Units involved
Russian Armed Forces: Ground Forces 76th Airborne Division 31st Airborne Brigade 18th Mechanized Brigade Navy Baltic Fleet Northern Fleet Black Sea Fleet Naval Infantry GRU 22nd Spetsnaz Brigade 45th Guards Spetsnaz Regiment	Armed Forces of Ukraine Ground Forces Air Force Airmobile Forces Ukrainian Navy Internal Affairs Ministry: National Guard Police State Border Guard File:Security Service of Ukraine.gif Security Service
Strength
Crimean Force: 25,000–30,000 Black Sea Fleet: 11,000 (including Marines) 30 + Warships (incl. submarine) 4 Squadrons of fighter aircraft (18 planes each) Reinforcements: 16,000–42,000 troops	Crimean garrison: ~ 14,500 - 18,800 troops 10 warships
Casualties and losses
17–200 Russian soldiers (acc. HR activists); and 10 captured 1 Crimean SDF trooper killed	195 soldiers killed (Donbass)* 2 soldiers killed and 60–80 captured (Crimea) 12 ships captured (3 damaged)
3 protesters killed (2 pro-Russian and 1 pro-Ukrainian)
The number of Ukranian soldiers killed in the Donbass area is since 13 August 2014, which is when the first Russian military deaths were reported in the area

Russia invaded Ukraine on several fronts following the events of the February 2014 Ukrainian revolution and Euromaidan movement which led to the flight and subsequent disputed impeachment of President Viktor Yanukovych. Following the ouster of Yanukovych government, a secession crisis erupted in the Ukrainian territory of Crimea. In late February, unmarked soldiers gradually took control of Crimea. U.S. officials and analysts said they were likely Russian special forces. Russia then annexed Crimea following a disputed status referendum. Later, a Russian-backed war against Ukrainian forces escalated in the Donbass region of Ukraine while unmarked troops and military vehicles from Russia crossed into Ukraine. and opened a new front on the coast of the Sea of Azov.

During the Crimean crisis, the Russian government insisted that the anti-Ukrainian government forces that took control of the autonomous republic did not include Russian troops stationed in the area,. In April however, Russian president Vladimir Putin admitted that Russian troops had been active in Crimea, and said that this had laid the ground for the referendum and facilitated self-determination for the peninsula. In mid-April, the United States accused Russia for the unrest in eastern and southern Ukraine and the subsequent war in the Donbass region, which the Russian Foreign Ministry also denied. Many of the separatist insurgents are Russian citizens, and American and Ukrainian officials said they had evidence of Russian interference in Ukraine, including intercepted communications between Russian officials and Donbass insurgents. The SBU claims key commanders of the rebel movement during this time, including Igor Strelkov and Igor Bezler are Russian agents. There is also evidence that indicates the Buk missile system, widely believed to have been used to shoot down Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 on the 17 July, came from Russia.

Videos of captured Russian soldiers have directly challenged Vladimir Putin’s longstanding claim that Russia has nothing to do with the conflict in eastern Ukraine.The Russian government maintained that the soldiers had entered Ukraine territory accidentally. Rebel leader Zakharchenko said that Russian soldiers in Ukraine were there of their own volition. Valentina Melnikova, head of the Russian Union of Committees of Soldiers’ Mothers, has said that the Russian authorities were threatening the relatives of soldiers who had been killed in Ukraine, and forcing them to keep silent about their deaths. The Kremlin has tried to systematically intimidate and silence human rights workers who have raised question about Russian soldiers' deaths in Ukraine, in a war which officially Russia denies being involved in.

In late August NATO released satellite images which it said showed evidence of Russian operations inside Ukraine with sophisticated weaponry. After the heavy defeat of Ukrainian forces by early September it was evident Russia had sent soldiers and armour across the border and locals acknowledged the role of Putin and Russian soldiers in effecting a reversal of fortunes. On September 10 Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko said most of the Russian forces had withdrawn from Ukrainian territory, and that this heightened the chances for a lasting cease-fire in the southeast. Despite the cease-fire agreement, however, fighting has continued in eastern Ukraine and Moscow sent a second convoy of trucks containing aid into Ukraine without Kiev's consent.

Several members of the international community have criticized Russia for its actions in post-revolutionary Ukraine, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Canada, Japan, the Netherlands, South Korea, Georgia, Moldova, Turkey, Australia and the European Union as a whole, which condemned Russia, accusing it of breaking international law and violating Ukrainian sovereignty. Many of these countries implemented economic sanctions against Russia or Russian individuals or companies, to which Russia responded in kind. Amnesty International has expressed its belief that Russia is fuelling the conflict.

Background

Main article: 2014 Crimean crisis

See also: Euromaidan, 2014 Ukrainian revolution, History of Crimea, and 1954 transfer of Crimea

Autumn 2013

In the autumn of 2013 the Kremlin warned Ukraine that if the country went ahead with a planned agreement on free trade with the EU, it would face financial catastrophe and possibly the collapse of the state. Sergei Glazyev, adviser to President Vladimir Putin, said that "Ukrainian authorities make a huge mistake if they think that the Russian reaction will become neutral in a few years from now. This will not happen." Russia had already imposed import restrictions on certain Ukrainian products and Glazyev did not rule out further sanctions if the agreement was signed. Glazyev allowed for the possibility of separatist movements springing up in the Russian-speaking east and south of Ukraine. He suggested that if Ukraine signed the agreement, Russia would consider the bilateral treaty that delineates the countries' borders to be void. Russia could no longer guarantee Ukraine's status as a state and could possibly intervene if pro-Russian regions of the country appealed directly to Moscow.

2014

Following months of protests as part of the Euromaidan movement, on 22 February 2014, protesters ousted government of Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych who was elected with 48.95% votes in 2010. The protesters took control of government buildings in the capital city of Kiev, along with the city itself. As Police abandoned their posts across the capital Kiev and the opposition established control over key intersections and the parliament, President Yanukovych fled Kiev for the eastern city of Kharkiv where he has traditionally had more support. After this incident, the Ukrainian parliament voted to restore the 2004 Constitution of Ukraine and remove Yanukovych from power. A vote on the resolution which stated that Yanukovych “is removing himself [from power] because he is not fulfilling his obligations” emerged 328-0 in support. The vote was 10 short of three-quarters of the Parliament members, the requirement of the Constitution of Ukraine for impeachment. Yanukovych claimed that the vote was unconstitutional because of this issue, and refused to resign. Politicians from eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, including Crimea, declared continuing loyalty to Yanukovych.

The next day, the Ukrainian parliament adopted a bill to repeal the law on minority languages, which protected the status of languages other than Ukrainian, such as the Russian language. This attempt to make Ukrainian the sole state language at all levels, seemingly in an expression of Ukrainian nationalism, alienated many in the vast Russian-speaking regions of Ukraine. A few days later, on 1 March, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov vetoed the bill, effectively stopping its enactment.

In the meantime, on the morning of 27 February, Berkut special police units from Crimea and other regions of Ukraine, which had been technically dissolved on 25 February, seized checkpoints on the Isthmus of Perekop and Chonhar peninsula. According to Ukrainian MP Hennadiy Moskal, former chief of the Crimean police, these Berkut had armored personnel carriers, grenade launchers, assault rifles, machine guns and other weapons. Since then, they have controlled all land traffic between Crimea and continental Ukraine.

Russian political actions

Russian permanent representative to the United Nations Vitaly Churkin presented on 4 March a photocopy of a letter signed by Victor Yanukovich on 1 March 2014 asking that Russian president Vladimir Putin use Russian armed forces to "restore the rule of law, peace, order, stability and protection of the population of Ukraine". Both houses of the Russian parliament voted on 1 March to give President Putin the right to use Russian troops in Crimea.

Crimea

See also: 2014 Crimean crisis and Timeline of the 2014 Crimean crisis

Unidentified gunmen on patrol at Simferopol International Airport, 28 February 2014

Days after Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich fled the capital of Kiev in late February 2014, armed men opposed to the Euromaidan movement began to take control of the Crimean Peninsula. Checkpoints were established by unmarked men with green military-grade uniforms and equipment in the capital of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Simferopol, and the independently-administered port-city of Sevastopol, home to a Russian naval base under the Kharkiv Pact of 2010. After the occupation of the Crimean parliament by these unmarked troops, widely believed to be Russian special forces, the Crimean leadership announced it would hold a referendum on secession from Ukraine. This heavily disputed referendum was followed by the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation in mid-March. Ukraine and most of the international community refused to recognize the referendum or the annexation. On April 15, the Ukrainian parliament declared Crimea a territory temporarily occupied by Russia. Since annexing Crimea, the Russian government moved to integrate the peninsula into Russia economically, politically, and culturally. It also increased its military presence in region, with Russian president Vladimir Putin saying a Russian military task force would be established there.

In September 2014 Russia's defence minister called for the deployment of reinforcements to the Crimea and southern Russia, citing the worsening crisis in Ukraine and buildup of foreign forces nearby. Sergei Shoigu said the "situation in Ukraine has sharply worsened and the foreign military presence has increased very close to our border."

Donbass

See also: War in Donbass and Timeline of the war in Donbass

Unrest against the new government of Ukraine began bubbling up in the Donbass region of eastern Ukraine not long after the February 2014 revolution. In early March, government buildings in Donetsk were temporarily occupied, and clashes between pro- and anti-government protesters broke out in the streets of the city. In April, the city of Sloviansk in northern Donetsk Oblast was abruptly seized by anti-government rebels led by Igor Girkin, a former Russian commando also known as "Strelkov". The insurgency spread, and within weeks, the Donetsk People's Republic and later the Lugansk People's Republic in neighboring Lugansk Oblast were declared. The self-proclaimed "people's republics" are not recognized by any state and are considered terrorist groups by the Ukrainian government, although they have received Russian backing.

A significant number of Russian citizens, many veterans or ultranationalists, are currently involved in the ongoing armed conflict, a fact acknowledged by separatist leaders. Carol Saivets, Russian specialist for the Security Studies Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology described the role of Russian soldiers as 'almost certainly' proceeding with the blessing and backing of the Russian state, "even if the Russians are indeed volunteers rather than serving military men". Recruitment for the Donbass insurgents was performed openly in Russian cities using private or voyenkomat facilities, as was confirmed by a number of Russian media.

In an interview with French television channel TF1 and Radio Europe1, Russian president Vladimir Putin said: "There are no armed forces, no 'Russian instructors' in Ukraine—and there never were any."

The well-organised and well-armed pro-Russian militants have been described by Ukrainian media as resembling those which occupied regions of Crimea during the 2014 Russian military intervention in Ukraine. The former deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Admiral Ihor Kabanenko, claims the militants are Russian military reconnaissance and sabotage units. Arsen Avakov stated the militants in Krasnyi Lyman used Russian-made AK-100 series assault rifles fitted with grenade launchers, and that such weapons are only in issue in the Russian Federation. "The Government of Ukraine is considering the facts of today as a manifestation of external aggression by Russia," said Avakov. Militants in Sloviansk arrived in military lorries without license plates.

A US State Department spokeswoman, Jen Psaki, says there is a "broad unity in the international community about the connection between Russia and some of the armed militants in eastern Ukraine". The Ukrainian government released photos of soldiers in eastern Ukraine, which the US State Department says show that some of the fighters are Russian special forces. US Secretary of State John Kerry said the militants "were equipped with specialized Russian weapons and the same uniforms as those worn by the Russian forces that invaded Crimea." The US ambassador to the United Nations said the attacks in Sloviansk were "professional," "coordinated," and that there was 'nothing grass-roots seeming about it'. The British foreign secretary, William Hague, stated, "I don't think denials of Russian involvement have a shred of credibility, […] The forces involved are well armed, well trained, well equipped, well co-ordinated, behaving in exactly the same way as what turned out to be Russian forces behaved in Crimea." The commander of NATO operations in Europe, Philip M. Breedlove, assessed that soldiers appeared to be highly trained and not a spontaneously formed local militia, and that "what is happening in eastern Ukraine is a military operation that is well planned and organized and we assess that it is being carried out at the direction of Russia."

A Russian opposition politician, Ilya Ponomarev, said "I am absolutely confident that in the eastern regions of Ukraine there are Russian troops in very small amounts. And it's not regular soldiers, but likely representatives of special forces and military intelligence." Later in July, after shoot-down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, he said that "Putin now understands that he has passed weapons to the wrong people". He also said that even if Moscow does not supply more weapons to the Donbass insurgents, there would still be enough supporters of the insurgency in the Russian military to continue such shipments unofficially.

Klaus Zillikens, head of the OSCE mission in Donetsk, said that the mission has detected signs of "foreign agents" operating in Ukraine, but thus far there is no evidence to confirm that. According to Georgij Alafuzoff, the Director of Intelligence at the European Union Military Staff, even if there is a Russian military presence in Ukraine, it is not as large as it was in Crimea. He suggests the militants are mostly local citizens, disappointed by the situation in the country. Nick Paton Walsh, reporting from Donetsk for CNN, stated that the physical appearance of the militants is different from that of the unidentified troops, spotted throughout Crimea while it was in the process of secession.

David Patrikarakos, a correspondent for the New Statesman said the following: "While at the other protests/occupations there were armed men and lots of ordinary people, here it almost universally armed and masked men in full military dress. Automatic weapons are everywhere. Clearly a professional military is here. There's the usual smattering of local militia with bats and sticks but also a military presence. Of that there is no doubt." Zbigniew Brzezinski, a former American National Security Advisor, said that the events in the Donbass were similar to events in Crimea, which led to its annexation by Russia, and noted that Russia acted similarly.

The New York Times journalists interviewed Sloviansk militants and found no clear link of Russian support: "There was no clear Russian link in the 12th Company’s arsenal, but it was not possible to confirm the rebels’ descriptions of the sources of their money and equipment." Commenting on the presence of the Vostok Battalion within insurgent ranks, Denis Pushilin said on 30 May, "It's simply that there were no volunteers [from Russia] before, and now they have begun to arrive – and not only from Russia." On the Ukrainian state television talk-show Shuster Live on 13 June 2014, the British journalist Mark Franchetti, who had just spent weeks with the Vostok Battalion, described the Battalion as largely untrained locals from eastern Ukraine, with a smattering of Russian volunteers. He also stated that the fighters in the Battalion who were now in the Donbass were "mainly normal, ordinary citizens who are absolutely convinced they are defending their homes – as they put it – against fascism". Franchetti stressed that he was not saying that there were no Russian troops operating in Ukraine, but that he did not come across any himself. He stated "I can only speak about what I saw with my own eyes".

In a meeting held on 7 July in Donetsk city, Russian politician Sergey Kurginyan held a press conference with representatives of Donbass People's Militia, including Pavel Gubarev, and said that Russia did provide significant military support for the separatists. During a discussion among the participants, Gubarev complained that the arms that had been sent was old, and not fully functional. In response, Kurginyan listed specific items, including 12,000 automatic rifles, grenade launchers, 2S9 Nona self-propelled mortars, two BMPs, and three tanks, that he knew had been supplied to the separatists by Russia. He also said he saw new, fully functional weapons unloaded at locations in Donbass which he would not "disclose as we are filmed by cameras". Kurginyan admitted that Russia had initially sent "4th category weapons", but since 3 June had supplied equipment that was fully functional. He also said one of his goals whilst in Donetsk was to ensure that military support from Russia was increased.

On 24 July, a week after the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, over an area of Ukraine controlled by pro-Russia separatists, most likely by pro-Russian forces, the American government stated that it had evidence that the Russian military was firing on Ukrainian territory from across the border. A spokesman for the US Department of Defence stated that there was "no question" as to Russia's involvement in the attacks on Ukrainian Armed Forces. On 28 July it published satellite photos showing heavy artillery shelling Ukrainian positions from Russian territory.

Aleksandr Zakharchenko takes an oath of office as the Prime Minister of Donetsk People's Republic, 8 August 2014. In August too he said 1200 fighters trained in Russia for four months, crossed and were ready to fight. He said the reinforcements included 30 tanks and 120 armoured vehicles.

Alexander Zakharchenko, said 1200 fighters trained in Russia for four months, crossed and are ready to fight. Zakharchenko said the reinforcements included 30 tanks and 120 armoured vehicles. He later denied making the comments.

A convoy of military vehicles, including armoured personnel carriers, with official Russian military plates crossed into Ukraine near the insurgent-controlled Izvaryne border crossing on 14 August. The Ukrainian government later said that they destroyed most of the armoured column with artillery. Secretary General of NATO Anders Fogh Rasmussen said this incident was "clear demonstration of continued Russian involvement in the destabilisation of eastern Ukraine". Surprisingly the same day, Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking to Russian ministers and Crimean parliamentarians on a visit to Crimea, undertook to do everything he could to end the conflict in Ukraine, saying Russia needed to build calmly and with dignity, not by confrontation and war which isolated it from the rest of the world. The comments came as international sanctions against Russia were being stepped up.

17 August, Ukraine accused Russia of sending more military equipment, including Grad rocket launchers, across the border and on to Nizhny Nagolchyk.Sergei Lavrov persisted in affirming that Russia was not sending any equipment across the border, and pointed out that an OSCE observer mission placed at border crossing points in the region had not identified any unlawful crossings of the border. Yet the OSCE mission that Lavrov pointed to as not having identified any unlawful crossings of the border had no mandate to check the long, unguarded sections of the border where crossings of men and equipment occur frequently.

Ukrainian Defence Minister Valeriy Heletey said on 21 August that the insurgents were using Russian-made weapons that had never been used or bought by the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Injured insurgents are usually treated in Russia, with help from the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. They are also questioned and registered by the Federal Security Service (FSB), the Russian domestic security and intelligence agency.

On 18 August Russian minister of defence Sergey Shoigu awarded Suvorov medal to Pskov Paratroopers Division. Russian media highlighted that the medal is awarded exclusively for combat operations and reported that a large number of soldiers from this division died in Ukraine just days before, but their burials were kept in secret.

According to NATO reports, Russian military has been shelling Ukrainian positions across the border since mid-August, and by 22 August, Russian artillery and personnel have crossed the border into Ukraine itself. On 25 August a column of Russian tanks and military vehicles was reported to have crossed into Ukraine in the southeast, near the town of Novoazovsk, and headed towards Ukrainian held Mariupol.

In early September Ukrainian troops at Dmitrivska came under attack from BM-30 Smerch rockets from Russia. Around Luhansk reports indicated that Ukrainian troops were retreating west. Russian soldiers with heavy armour are reported to have come over the border to back up the rebels. Ukrainian troops gave accounts of fighting the Russian army during the Battle of Ilovaisk.

Journalist Tim Judah has said of the scale of the devastation suffered by Ukrainian forces in southeastern Ukraine over the last week of August 2014 that it amounted 'to a catastrophic defeat and will long be remembered by embittered Ukrainians as among the darkest days of their history.' The scale of the destruction achieved in several ambushes revealed 'that those attacking the pro-government forces were highly professional and using very powerful weapons.' The fighting in Ilovaysk had begun on August 7 when units from three Ukrainian volunteer militias and the police attempted to take it back from rebel control. Then, on August 28, the rebels were able to launch a major offensive, with help from elsewhere, including Donetsk—though “not Russia,” according to Commander Givi, the head of rebel forces there. By September 1 it was all over and the Ukrainians had been decisively defeated. Commander Givi said the ambushed forces were militias not regular soldiers whose numbers had been boosted, 'by foreigners, including Czechs, Hungarians, and “niggers.” '

5 September Russia's Permanent Representative to the OSCE, Andrey Kelin said it was natural pro-Russian separatists “are going to liberate” Mariupol. Ukrainian forces claim that Russian intelligence groups have been spotted in the area. Kelin said 'there might be volunteers over there.' NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen meanwhile said there are several thousand regular Russian forces operating in Ukraine. Channel 4 News reported on the total destruction of Luhansk International Airport, probably because the Russians decided to 'turn the tide ' - the terminal building and everything around was utterly destroyed. Forces similar to those seen in Crimea were present - but they were not allowed to be filmed.

August "invasion"

In late August 2014, Russia moved self-propelled artillery onto the territory of Ukraine, Russian soldiers were captured in Donetsk Oblast; Russia claimed that they had crossed over by accident. Russia was reported to have shelled Ukrainian territory, and Russian military forces were reported to have entered Ukraine near Novoazovsk. On August 24, 2014, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko referred to the conflict as Ukraine's "Patriotic War of 2014" and a war against "external aggression". The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine labeled the conflict an invasion on August 27, 2014.

On August 27 two columns of Russian tanks entered Ukrainian territory in support of the pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk and Luhansk and engaged Ukrainian border forces. NATO officials have stated that over 1000 Russian troops have invaded Ukraine. The Russian government denies these claims. NATO has published satellite photos which are claimed to show the presence of Russian troops within Ukrainian territory. The pro-Russian separatists have admitted that Russian troops are fighting alongside them, stating that this was "no secret", but that the Russian troops were just soldiers who preferred to take their vacations fighting in Ukraine rather than "on the beach". The Prime Minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic stated that 3000 to 4000 Russian troops had been fighting in separatist ranks and that most of them had not returned to Russia, having continued to fight in Ukraine.

For at least one week prior to the invasion, Russia had been shelling Ukrainian units from across the border, but instances of cross-border shelling from Russia had been reported since mid-July. At the time, Russian government spokesman denied these allegations. On August 13, members of the Russian Human Rights Commission stated that over 100 Russian soldiers had been killed in the fighting in Ukraine and inquired why they were there. On August 28, members of the commission called the presence of Russian troops on Ukrainian soil "an outright invasion". On 28 August 2014, Ukraine ordered national mandatory conscription.

The two Russian tank columns captured the southeastern city of Novoazovsk on the Azov sea, and Russian soldiers began arresting and deporting to unknown locations all Ukrainians who did not have an address registered within the town. Pro-Ukrainian anti-war protests took place in Mariupol which was threatened by Russian troops. The UN Security Council called an emergency meeting in regard to the situation.

Around 29–30 August, Russian tanks destroyed "virtually every house" in Novosvitlivka, according to Ukrainian military spokesman Andriy Lysenko. On 2 September, after Ukrainian forces agreed to surrender Ilovaisk, they were bombarded by Russian forces while they evacuated through a "green corridor." The assault on the troops who were marked with white flags was variously described as a "massacre." At least 100 were killed.

On 3 September, Ukrainian President Poroshenko said he had reached a permanent ceasefire agreement with Russian President Putin. Russia then denied the ceasefire took place, denying being party to the conflict at all. Ukraine then retracted its previous statement concerning the potential ceasefire.

Also on September 3 OSCE for the first time reported "light and heavy calibre shootings from the east and south-east areas which are also bordering Ukraine". In this report, it is also stated that the OSCE Observer Teams have also seen an increase of military-style dressed men crossing the border in both directions, including ones with LPR and Novorossiya symbols and flags, and wounded being transported back to Russia

Status of Russian soldiers

The speaker of Russia's upper house of parliament and Russian state television channels acknowledged that Russian soldiers entered Ukraine, but have referred to them as "volunteers". A reporter for Novaya Gazeta, an opposition newspaper in Russia, claimed that the Russian military leadership paid soldiers to resign their commissions and fight in Ukraine in the early summer of 2014, and then began ordering soldiers into Ukraine. This reporter said to have knowledge of at least one case when soldiers who refused were threatened with prosecution. Russian opposition MP Lev Schlosberg made similar claims, although he said combatants from his country are "regular Russian troops", disguised as units of DPR and LPR.

Repatriation of Russian soldiers

The repatriation of Russians killed in action or taken as prisoners of war has become a controversial topic in the media due to the Russian state's denial of involvement in Ukraine. Many families have shown growing concern about the whereabouts of their children as Russian military officials only tell them that they are on "training exercises."

In early September 2014, Russian state owned television channels reported on the funerals of Russian soldiers who died in Ukraine during the War in Donbass, but described them as "volunteers" fighting for the "Russian world". Valentina Matviyenko, a top politician in the ruling United Russia party, also praised "volunteers" fighting in "our fraternal nation", referring to Ukraine.

After a series of military defeats and setbacks for the Donetsk and Lugansk separatists, who united under the banner of "Novorossiya" after a term Russian President Vladimir Putin used to describe southeastern Ukraine, Russia dispatched what it called a "humanitarian convoy" of trucks across the Russo-Ukrainian border in mid-August 2014. Ukraine reacted to the move by calling it a "direct invasion".

About the same time, multiple reports indicated separatist militias were receiving reinforcements that allowed them to turn the tables on government forces. Armored columns coming from Russia also pushed into southern Donetsk Oblast and reportedly captured the town of Novoazovsk, clashing with Ukrainian forces and opening a new front in the Donbass conflict.

On 25 August Security Service of Ukraine announced the capture of a group of Russian soldiers from the paratroopers military unit 71211 from Kostroma, who crossed Ukrainian border in the night of 23 August. The soldiers were stopped in Dzerkalne, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the border. SBU also released their photos and names. The next day Russian Ministry of Defence explained they crossed the border "by accident". There were also reports in Russian media, such as Pskovskaya Guberniya, that Russian paratroopers may have been killed in Ukraine. Journalists traveled to Pskov, the reported burial location of the troops, to investigate. Multiple reporters said they had been attacked or threatened there, and that the attackers erased several camera memory cards. On 31 August Russian media reported that ten Russian paratroopers captured inside Ukraine had returned home following a troop exchange. Ukraine said the soldiers were captured 20 km from the border with Russia and Russia claimed that the soldiers had crossed in Ukraine "by accident". The exchanged 64 Ukrainian troops captured inside Russia were said to have entered Russia to escape the upsurge in fighting. Russia claimed that the Russian troops had mistakenly crossed an unmarked area of the border while on patrol.

On 3 September Sky News team filmed groups of troops near Novoazovsk wearing modern combat gear typical for Russian units and moving on new military vehicles with number plates and other markings removed. Specialists consulted by the journalists identified parts of the equipment (uniform, rifles) as currently used by Russian ground forces and paratroopers. Russian state television for the first time showed the funeral of a soldier killed fighting in east Ukraine. State-controlled TV station Channel One showed the burial of paratrooper Anatoly Travkin in the central Russian city of Kostroma. The broadcaster said Travkin had not told his wife or commanders about his decision to fight alongside pro-Russia rebels battling government forces. "Officially he just went on leave," the news reader said.

Russian officials denies reports that Russian military units are operating in Ukraine (see War in Donbass), claiming instead they had been sent on routine drills close to the border with Ukraine and crossed the border by mistake. On August 28, 2014 Dutch Brigadier-General Nico Tak, head of NATO's crisis management center, said that "over 1,000 Russian troops are now operating inside Ukraine". Different sources give numbers of Russian soldiers killed during war in Ukraine between 30 and 100, the majority killed since August 2014.

On 5 September Sergey Krivenko, a member of Russian President's Council for Civil Society and Human Rights, commented on the growing number of Russian soldiers getting killed in Ukraine saying that "the situation now is very strange, something unusual is going on; it could be described as massive dying of soldiers, which is not typical for time of peace; people from different military units are killed as result of shots, from loss of blood, all these reasons are documented; and the military command explains that it happened during training or provides no explanation at all"

Valentina Melnikova, head of the Russian Union of Committees of Soldiers’ Mothers, has said that the Russian authorities were threatening the relatives of soldiers who had been killed in Ukraine, and forcing them to keep silent about their deaths. The Kremlin has tried to systematically intimidate and silence human rights workers who have raised question about Russian soldiers' deaths in Ukraine, in a war which officially Russia denies being involved in. In mid September, Ksenia Batanova, a senior producer for the news network Dozhd, was assaulted in an attack that fractured her skull. Dozhd is a channel that has covered the Russian involvement in Ukraine, and kept a running tally of soldiers' deaths at this time. Kremlin's pressure on this channel of independent information has intensified during the Ukraine crisis. The BBC reported on the death of a Russian soldier, Konstantin, killed 12 August 2014, who had three weeks previously been at home forty miles from Astrakhan. Telephone calls to his sister in the intervening weeks had spoken of Ukraine. The BBC team investigating this death was stopped and attacked by thugs and its video camera smashed. Russia continues to insist it sends no soldiers into eastern Ukraine.

Training facility

In a press briefing by the Ukrainian Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council (NSDC), Andriy Parubiy stated that militants were trained in a military facility in Rostov-on-Don, Russia. "Near Rostov-on-Don, there is a big military base where terrorists are preparing for deployment into the territory of the Ukrainian state. This is confirmed not only by our intelligence, but also Russian prisoners who were detained, and they testify about this base," Parubiy said. He added that more than a thousand militants are trained by Russian instructors, and then they in small armed groups try to break into the territory of Ukraine. On 21 May, a Russian citizen with military experience was detained trying to enter the country, who upon investigation, was found to have recently trained in the Rostov facility.

According to Russian 'volunteer' insurgent organiser Aleksandr Zhuchkovsky, Rostov-on-Don acts as a staging area for the activity where soldiers live in hotels, rented flats and tent camps.

According to Jen Psaki, the United States Department of State is confident that Russia has sent tanks and rocket launchers from a deployment site in southwest Russia into eastern Ukraine, and NATO satellite imagery has shown that on 10 and 11 June main battle tanks were stationed across the border at Donetsk in a staging area in Rostov-on-Don.

In July 2014, Reuters published a logbook of an 9K38 Igla missile that was signed out of military storage in Moscow for a military base in Rostov-on-Don, and ended up with insurgents in Donbass, where it was eventually taken over by the Ukrainian forces.

After OSCE observers arrived at Gukovo border crossing on 9 August, they reported that there was a stream of multiple groups of people wearing military-style dress crossing the border between Russia and Ukraine, in both directions, some of them clearly identifying themselves as members of DNR militia. They also observed several ambulance evacuations of wounded supporters of the DPR and LPR.

Non-military events

At a meeting to protest against the Russian intervention in Ukraine that took place near the Ministry of Defense building in Moscow on 2 March, 28 protesters were arrested by the police. Andrei Yurov, an expert of the Moscow Helsinki Group, said that the decision of the Council of the Federation allowing President Putin to use military force within the territory of Ukraine was taken on the basis of unconfirmed information about the "victims" among citizens in Crimea.

Union of the Committees of Soldiers' Mothers of Russia started actively questioning the government's policy of "secret war" after a number of Russian soldiers officially sent for "training" to Rostov area and died there for reasons never officially revealed to the families. These facts were further investigated by non-mainstream media in Russia. Russian Ministry of Defence used the tactics of always denying presence of any Russian soldiers in Ukraine and, when presented with undeniable evidence about specific people, admitting that they might have crossed the border "by mistake", or at that time were "on holiday", or their contracts were cancelled (but actually backdated). Soldier's Mothers also expressed their concern about families of killed soldiers, because if they have weren't officially sent to the war zone, the families will be not receiving social support and veteran's pension.

In Crimea

See also: 2014 Crimean crisis and Timeline of the 2014 Crimean crisis

Russian President Putin laying wreaths at a monument to the defenders of Sevastopol, 9 May 2014

• The Crimean Prime Minister Aksyonov asserted control over all security forces in Crimea and appealed to Russia for assistance in maintaining peace and tranquility. The position of Prime Minister is appointed by the President of Ukraine; On 1 March, acting president Turchynov decried the appointment of Sergei Aksyonov as the head of the government of Crimea as unconstitutional.
• On 4 March Prime Minister Aksyonov announced the creation of a Crimean navy and Ministry of Defence. He also stated that three air defence units and over 5000 personnel pledged allegiance to Crimea.
• Ukraine invited OSCE military experts to Crimea but they were turned away four times by pro-Russia gunmen who, on one occasion, fired warning shots. After being repeatedly refused entry to Crimea, unarmed OSCE military observers have been visiting other parts of Ukraine including the country's east.
• On 26 March, it was announced that Ukrainian officers detained by Russian forces, including Col. Yuliy Mamchur, were being released. Those who did not join the Russian military were expected to leave the Crimean peninsula.
• On 28 March, the Russian Defense Minister said that captured Ukrainian military hardware in the Crimean operation would be returned.

• On September 16 masked armed men reportedly surrounded the Crimean Tatar’s Mejlis building in Simferopol. According to the Unian News Agency, the armed men refused to state why they were carrying out the operation, saying “they were not authorized to speak.” Three masked men were caught on CCTV removing the Ukrainian flag from the building the night before. In his speech at the Kremlin, on 18 March, Vladimir Putin expressed "great respect for people of all the ethnic groups living in Crimea."

Reactions to the Russian intervention in Crimea

Main article: International reactions to the 2014 Crimean crisis

Ukrainian response

File:Ukranian military roadblocks in Donetsk oblast 2.jpg

Ukranian military roadblocks in Donetsk oblast

Interim Ukrainian President Oleksandr Turchynov accused Russia of "provoking a conflict" by invading Crimea. He compared Russia's military actions to the 2008 Russia–Georgia war, when Russian troops occupied parts of the Republic of Georgia, and the breakaway enclaves of Abkhazia and South Ossetia were established under the control of Russian-backed administrations. He called on Putin to withdraw Russian troops from Crimea and stated that Ukraine will "preserve its territory" and "defend its independence". On 1 March, he warned, "Military intervention would be the beginning of war and the end of any relations between Ukraine and Russia."

On 1 March, Acting President Oleksandr Turchynov placed the Armed Forces of Ukraine on full alert and combat readiness.

US and NATO military response

See also: NATO-Russia relations

Russia's actions increased tensions in nearby countries historically within its sphere of influence, particularly the Baltic and Moldova; all have large Russian-speaking populations, and Russian troops are stationed in the breakaway Moldovan territory of Transnistria. Some devoted resources to increasing defensive capabilities, and many requested increased support from the U.S. and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which they had joined in recent years. The conflict "reinvigorated" NATO, which had been created to face the Soviet Union, but had devoted more resources to "expeditionary missions" in recent years.

US officials Assistant Secretary Nuland and Ambassador to Ukraine Pyatt greet Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Warsaw on 4 June 2014

NATO increasingly saw Russia as an adversary, though officials hoped this would be temporary. Initial deployments in March and early April were restricted to increased air force monitoring and training in the Baltics and Poland, and single ships in the Black Sea. On 16 April, officials announced the deployment of ships to the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas, and increasing exercises in "Eastern Europe". The measures were apparently limited so as not to appear aggressive. Leaders emphasized that the conflict was not a new Cold War but some analysts disagreed. Others supported applying George F. Kennan's concept of containment to possible Russian expansion. Former U.S. Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul said, "We are enduring a drift of disengagement in world affairs. As we pull back, Russia is pushing forward. I worry about the new nationalism that Putin has unleashed and understand that many young Russians also embrace these extremist ideas."

Beginning 23 April 600 US troops from the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team held bilateral exercises in Poland and the Baltic. Plans were made for a communications mission to counter Russian propaganda in eastern Ukraine, improve internal Ukrainian military communication, and handle apparent Russian infiltration of the security services.

Georgia intensified its push for entry into NATO; it hoped to gain Membership Action Plan status in September. It also expressed interest in a missile defense system via NATO.

Baltic states

On 5 March the Pentagon announced, independently of NATO, that it would send six fighter jets and a refueling aircraft to augment the four already participating in the Baltic Air Policing mission. The US rotation was due to last through the end of April. The Polish Air Force was scheduled to participate from 1 May through 31 August.

• Throughout the second half of March, the UK, France, the Czech Republic, and Denmark all offered aircraft to augment the Polish rotation. UK officials announced plans to send six Eurofighter Typhoon. Over the next two weeks, France offered four fighters, and anonymous officials mentioned possible air support for Poland and stationing AWACs in Poland and Romania. The Czech Republic offered to deploy fighter aircraft to interested countries bordering or near Ukraine. Denmark planned to send six F-16 fighters.

• After some consideration, Germany's Defense Ministry committed to sending six Eurofighters (to reinforce the Portuguese rotation beginning in September) and leading "minesweeping maneuvers" in the Baltic Sea. A multinational group of four minesweeper ships and a supply ship from the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 left Kiel, Germany on 22 April.

• Swedish, Lithuanian, and US aircraft took part in exercises over the Baltic in early April. The US was considering establishing a small but "continuous" military force in the Baltic to reassure its allies. NATO and Estonia agreed to base aircraft at the Ämari Air Base, which was reportedly possible due to the increased number of planes offered by allies. The Lithuanian defense ministry reported that the number of Russian planes flying close to the border had increased in January and February.

Black and Mediterranean Seas

An Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, the USS Truxtun, crossed into the Black Sea on 6 March to participate in long-planned exercises with Bulgaria and Romania. American officials stated that it was part of a routine deployment for exercises with the Bulgarian and Romanian navies. The Truxtun left the Black Sea by 28 March, but some politicians argued that it should return as a show of support. An additional 175 Marines were to be deployed to the Black Sea Rotational Force in Romania, though this was decided in late 2012.

On 10 April, the guided missile destroyer USS Donald Cook entered the Black Sea to "reassure NATO allies and Black Sea partners of America's commitment to strengthen and improve interoperability while working towards mutual goals in the region", according to a Pentagon spokesman. On 14 April, the ship was repeatedly buzzed by a Su-24 Russian attack aircraft. The Donald Cook left the Black Sea on 28 April, leaving the USS Taylor.

On 30 April, Canada redeployed the HMCS Regina from counter-terrorist operations in the Arabian Sea, likely to join Standing NATO Maritime Group 1, which had itself been reassigned to the eastern Mediterranean in response to events in Ukraine.

Poland and Romania

• 7 U.S. F-16's were scheduled to participate in a training exercise in Poland. On 6 March, it was announced that 12 fighters and 300 service personnel would go to Poland. The increase was attributed to concerns over Russian activities in Crimea. It was later announced that the detachment from the 555th Fighter Squadron would remain through the end of 2014. Six F-16's were also stationed in Romania with no given departure date.

• On 10 March, NATO began using Boeing E-3 Sentry AWACS airborne radar aircraft to monitor Poland's and Lithuania's border with Kaliningrad. Monitoring also took place in Romania.

• On 26 March, US and UK defense chiefs agreed to accelerate the development of the NATO missile defence system. Talks were "dominated" by the situation in Ukraine, but officials emphasized that this was not a response to Russian actions.

NATO foreign ministers at a meeting in early April did not rule out stationing troops in countries near Russia, saying that Russia had "gravely breached the trust upon which our cooperation must be based". Poland requested that "two heavy brigades" be stationed on its territory, to mixed responses; NATO considered increased support for Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Moldova.

• On 17 April, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced a deployment of six CF-18 jet fighters to be based in Poland, and 20 additional staff officers to the NATO headquarters. The planes were apparently redirected to Romania, along with at least 220 Canadian personnel.

• On 24 April, France announced the deployment of four Rafale fighters to Poland's Malbork Airbase as a "defensive posture".

Relations with Russia

According to Stars and Stripes, the Atlas Vision exercise with Russia (planned for July) was cancelled. The Rapid Trident exercise in western Ukraine, scheduled for the same time, was to proceed as planned, as was the naval exercise Sea Breeze.

France suspended most military cooperation with Russia and considered halting the sale of two Mistral-class warships it had been contracted to build. Canada, the UK, and Norway all suspended cooperation to some extent. On 1 April, NATO suspended all military and civilian cooperation with Russia. Russian diplomatic access to NATO headquarters was restricted.

On 8 May, Russia conducted a large-scale military drill simulating a US/NATO nuclear attacks. Analysts considered it to be politically motivated to compete with NATO.

Military actions in other countries

Belarus

• Ukraine reported that Russian units in Belarus were participating in Russia's military exercises near the Ukrainian border.
• On 24 March, Viktor Bondarev, commander of the Russian Air Force, announced plans to station 24 Su-27 fighters in Baranovichi by the end of the year.

Sweden and Finland

Officials in Sweden and Finland were concerned by apparent Russian intelligence activities. While both Nordic countries were strongly non-aligned (only participating in NATO's Partnership for Peace), and experts considered a Russian attack unlikely, interest in NATO membership increased slightly. Local populations preferred a possible Sweden-Finland alliance, and both countries increased radar- and aircraft-based monitoring of Russian movements. In late April, Sweden announced plans to gradually increase its defense budget by over 10% by 2024, purchase 10 new fighter planes, and equip its fighters with cruise missiles.

Turkey

• On 7 March, the Turkish Air Force reported it scrambled six F-16 fighter jets after a Russian surveillance plane flew along Turkey's Black Sea coast. It was the second incident of its kind reported that week, with one occurring the day before on 6 March. The Russian plane remained in international airspace. Diplomatic sources revealed that Turkey has warned Russia that if it attacks Ukraine and its Crimean Tatar population, it would blockade Russian ships' passage to the Black Sea.

International diplomatic and economic responses

Further information: International reactions to the 2014 Crimean crisis and List of individuals sanctioned during the 2014 Ukrainian crisis

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Ukrainian members of parliament, 4 March 2014

A number of countries condemned and expressed grave concerns over the Russian intervention in Ukraine. The UN Security Council held a special meeting at the weekend on the crisis. The G7 countries condemned the violation of Ukraine's sovereignty, and urged Russia to withdraw. All G7 leaders are refusing to participate in it due to assumed violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, in contravention of Russia's obligations under the UN Charter and its 1997 basing agreement with Ukraine.

Financial markets

The intervention caused turbulence in financial markets. Many markets around the world fell slightly due to the threat of instability. The Swiss franc climbed to a 2-year high against the dollar and 1-year high against the Euro. The Euro and the US dollar both rose, as did the Australian dollar. The Russian stock market declined by more than 10 percent, whilst the Russian ruble hit all-time lows against the US dollar and the Euro. The Russian central bank hiked interest rates and intervened in the foreign exchange markets to the tune of $12 billion to try to stabilize its currency. Prices for wheat and grain rose, with Ukraine being a major exporter of both crops. In early August 2014, the German DAX was down by 6 percent for the year, and 11 percent since June, over concerns Russia, Germany's biggest trade partner, would retaliate against sanctions.

Reactions to the Russian intervention in Donbass

Main article: International reactions to the war in Donbass

• Amnesty International considers the war to be "an international armed conflict" and presented independent satellite photos analysis proving involvement of regular Russian army in the conflict. It accuses Ukrainian militia and separatist forces for being responsible for war crimes and has called on all parties, including Russia, to stop violations of the laws of war.. Amnesty has expressed its belief that Russia is fuelling the conflict, 'both through direct interference and by supporting the separatists in the East' and called on Russia to 'stop the steady flow of weapons and other support to an insurgent force heavily implicated in gross human rights violations.'
• NATO – The Russian government's decision to send a truck convoy into Luhansk on 22 August without Ukrainian consent was condemned by NATO and several NATO member states, including the United States. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called it "a blatant breach of Russia’s international commitments" and "a further violation of Ukraine's sovereignty by Russia".
• European Union – Leaders warned that Russia faced harsher economic sanctions than the EU had previously imposed if it failed to withdraw troops from Ukraine.
• Ukraine – Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament Oleksandr Turchynov said "It's a hybrid war that Russia has begun against Ukraine, a war with the participation of the Russian security services and the army."
• United States - US Ambassador to the United Nations, Samantha Power commented on the invasion by noting that "At every step, Russia has become before this council to say everything but the truth. It has manipulated, obfuscated and outright lied. Russia has to stop lying and has to stop fuelling this conflict." The United States government said it supported stiffer sanctions as well.

See also

• 2014 Crimean crisis
• 2014 Russian anti-war protests
• Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances
• Euromaidan
• Russia–Ukraine border
• Russia–Ukraine relations
• Deportation of the Crimean Tatars
• 1954 transfer of Crimea
• Russo-Georgian war
• Occupied territories of Georgia

Further reading

• Bremmer, Ian (1994). "The Politics of Ethnicity: Russians in the New Ukraine". Europe-Asia Studies. 46 (2): 261–283. doi:10.1080/09668139408412161.
• Hagendoorn, A.; Linssen, H.; Tumanov, S. V. (2001). Intergroup Relations in States of the former Soviet Union: The Perception of Russians. New York: Taylor & Francis. ISBN 1-84169-231-X.
• Legvold, Robert (2013). Russian Foreign Policy in the Twenty-first Century and the Shadow of the Past. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-51217-6.

External links

• RT News Anchor resigns on air citing propaganda. CNN World. 5 March 2014

* Russia's invasion of Ukraine (live updates). Kyiv Post. 2 March 2014

• Template:Uk icon Putin vs the people of Ukraine.. 2 March 2014. Ukrayinska Pravda.
• Ukraine crisis: an essential guide to everything that's happened so far - The Guardian
• Implications of Russia's aggression against Ukraine study by the Swedish Defence Research Agency
• bbc Ukraine timeline
• BBC as it happened Russia troops 'inside Ukraine'