A thousand days have passed since Russia decided to invade Ukraine. After the initial advance of the Russian army, the Ukrainians managed to repel some of the Russian attacks, especially on the shared northern border. In the south of the country, the Ukrainian army managed to force the invaders to retreat behind the Dnieper. In the summer of 2024, the Ukrainian army was even able to counterattack in Kursk, on Russian territory.

However, several areas of eastern Ukraine, notably Luansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Kherson, are still under Russian occupation, while Moscow has also annexed the Crimean peninsula since 2014. All in all, for two years the frontline has hardly shifted at all.

Millions of refugees

More than 10 million people have been displaced by the war. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the war in Ukraine has caused one of the largest refugee crises in the world: so far 6.7 million Ukrainian refugees have found refuge in other European countries, while 4 million Ukrainians have found refuge in other areas within Ukrainian territory.

Since August over 170,000 people have fled their homes in eastern Ukraine. “Countless kids are taking their school classes online and are missing out on all the social contact and stimulation they would have in a classroom,” said Kelly T. Clements, UNHCR Deputy High Commissioner.

Poverty and economic depression

The humanitarian situation in Ukraine has deteriorated dramatically since the start of the war according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA). About 40% of the population is now dependent on humanitarian aid. The humanitarian aid offered by UNHCR and UNOCHA to meet the basic needs of Ukrainians now reaches 4.2 billion dollars (about 4 billion euros).

According to UNOCHA, already in January 2024, 65% of the energy supply and heating network was paralyzed. “Homes, schools and hospitals are affected again and again, while the same is happening with the water and electricity networks, as well as with the natural gas supply network. Fundamental structures of the country are under attack and the effects are devastating,” said UNOCHA head Martin Griffiths. In fact, in the fall of 2024, the Russian army carried out even more attacks on the infrastructure of Ukraine.

Correspondingly, the economic situation of the country is also disastrous. According to the World Bank and the Ukrainian Ministry of Agriculture, Ukraine’s GDP for 2022 has shrunk by 35%. 60% of the population now lives on the poverty line. And the destruction of the domestic infrastructure during the war is estimated at 130 billion euros.

The Russian war economy is proving resilient

The EU and several of Ukraine’s Western allies responded to the Russian invasion by imposing extensive economic sanctions on Moscow – but to little avail.

After a limited contraction in 2022, both Russia’s GDP and the ruble recovered quickly, thanks to the country’s shift to a war economy, as well as support from Beijing.

Russia’s ban on fossil fuel imports has failed to significantly curb Moscow’s export earnings, with state-owned enterprises finding new buyers, notably in China and India. In addition, there are also indications that Russian fossil fuels are still reaching Europe anyway despite the embargo, for example by circumventing existing sanctions with the help of third countries.

Billions for the Ukrainian armed forces

Kiev has also received significant economic, humanitarian and military aid from the EU and NATO, as well as the US, which has provided more than any other country.

From the start of the war on February 24, 2022 until the end of August 2024, the economic valuation of the aid that the US has provided to Ukraine is estimated at 85 billion euros, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, while aid from the EU and its member states is valued at 100 billion euros.

The newly elected president of the USA, Donald Trump, has announced that he will drastically reduce the aid that the USA sends to Ukraine – as well as that he will immediately put an end to the war. So far, however, no more has been known about how it will achieve this.

Edited by: Giorgos Passas