Ukraine: How Did We Get Here?

Ukraine is the largest country entirely in Europe — about 603,000 square kilometers, roughly the size of Texas. Before the war, around 44 million people lived there. It shares borders with Russia to the east, Belarus to the north, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary to the west, and Romania and Moldova to the southwest.^[1]

Ukraine sits between two powerful forces: Russia to the east and the European Union to the west. For centuries, Ukraine has been pulled in both directions. Understanding this tug-of-war is the key to understanding everything that's happened — from the ancient past to the war today.

The map above shows the most important places you'll hear about in this story. Click on any marker to learn why it matters.

Over a thousand years ago, a powerful state called Kievan Rus' rose up around the city of Kyiv. Founded around 882 AD by Viking and Slavic rulers, it became one of the largest and most advanced civilizations in medieval Europe. Kyiv was its capital — a center of trade, culture, and religion.^[1]

Here's why this matters today: Russian President Vladimir Putin has argued that Ukrainians and Russians are "one people" because they both come from Kievan Rus'. But Ukrainians point out that Kyiv was their capital first — and that they've had their own language, culture, and identity for centuries. This argument about the past is one of the reasons there's a war in the present.^[2]

In 1240, the Mongol Empire invaded and destroyed Kyiv, scattering its people. Power shifted north to Moscow — which would eventually become Russia. Meanwhile, in what is now southern Ukraine, communities of fierce, independent warriors called Cossacks built self-governing settlements along the Dnipro River. The Cossacks are still a powerful symbol of Ukrainian freedom and resistance.^[3]

Starting in the 1700s, the Russian Empire swallowed up most of Ukraine piece by piece. In 1783, Catherine the Great seized Crimea. Over the next century, the empire banned the Ukrainian language in schools, books, and public life. The message was clear: be Russian, or be silent.^[1]

But one person refused to be silent. Taras Shevchenko (1814–1861) was a poet and artist who wrote in Ukrainian when it was illegal to do so. Born into serfdom (basically slavery), he was eventually freed and became the voice of Ukrainian identity. His poetry — about freedom, about the beauty of Ukraine, about resisting oppression — is still memorized by Ukrainian schoolchildren today. He's considered the father of Ukrainian literature.^[2]

When World War I and the Russian Revolution shook everything apart in 1917, Ukrainians saw their chance. Led by historian Mykhailo Hrushevsky, they declared the Ukrainian People's Republic — their first modern independent state. But it didn't last. By 1921, the Bolsheviks (the communist revolutionaries who created the Soviet Union) had crushed Ukrainian independence and absorbed the country into the USSR.^[3]

This is a pattern that repeats throughout Ukrainian history: Ukraine tries to be free → a bigger power takes over. It happened with the Mongols. It happened with the Russian Empire. It happened with the Bolsheviks. Understanding this pattern helps you understand why Ukrainians fight so hard for independence today — they've been trying to win it for centuries.

Before Ukraine could become independent, one more disaster struck — and this one would change everything. On April 26, 1986, a reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant (just 100 km north of Kyiv) exploded, causing the worst nuclear disaster in history. The Soviet government tried to cover it up, waiting days to evacuate nearby towns. The fallout spread across Europe.^[1]

Chernobyl didn't just poison the land — it poisoned Ukrainians' trust in the Soviet government. People saw that Moscow cared more about hiding the truth than protecting lives. The disaster fueled the independence movement: if the Soviet Union couldn't even keep its people safe, why stay?^[1]

When the Soviet Union began to collapse in 1991, Ukraine held a referendum — a nationwide vote on one question: should Ukraine be independent? 92% voted yes. Even in Crimea (where many people spoke Russian and felt close ties to Moscow), a majority voted for independence. On December 1, 1991, Ukraine became a free country for the first time in modern history.^[2]

But freedom was messy. Ukraine's economy collapsed — GDP fell by 60% during the 1990s. A small group of super-rich businessmen called oligarchs grabbed control of industries like steel, energy, and media. Corruption was everywhere. Ordinary Ukrainians struggled while the wealthy got richer.^[3]

There was also a big identity question. People in western Ukraine (which had historically been part of Poland and Austria) tended to look toward Europe. People in eastern Ukraine (closer to Russia, with many Russian speakers) had closer ties to Moscow. This wasn't a clean split — it was more of a gradient, like a color slowly changing from blue to yellow across the map. But it mattered politically, because Ukraine's leaders had to choose: move closer to Europe, or stay close to Russia?^[3]

The Orange Revolution (2004)

In 2004, Ukraine held a presidential election. The pro-Russia candidate, Viktor Yanukovych, was declared the winner — but the election was full of fraud. Thousands of ballots were faked, and voters were intimidated. Ukrainians were furious.^[1]

Hundreds of thousands of people flooded the streets of Kyiv wearing orange (the color of the opposition candidate). They camped out in freezing temperatures for weeks, demanding a fair election. It worked. The courts ordered a new vote, and the pro-Western candidate, Viktor Yushchenko, won.^[1]

But hope faded fast. Yushchenko's government struggled with the same old problems — corruption, infighting, and economic trouble. By 2010, Ukrainians were so frustrated that they elected Yanukovych (the same guy from the rigged election) as president — this time legitimately.^[2]

Euromaidan — The Revolution of Dignity (2013–2014)

In November 2013, Yanukovych was about to sign a deal that would bring Ukraine closer to the European Union — better trade, more cooperation, a step toward joining Europe. Most Ukrainians supported it. But at the last minute, under heavy pressure from Russia's Vladimir Putin, Yanukovych backed out and chose a deal with Russia instead.^[3]

Ukrainians exploded with anger. Within days, hundreds of thousands of people filled Maidan (Independence Square) in central Kyiv. They weren't just protesting one decision — they were demanding a future in Europe, an end to corruption, and a government that listened to its people.^[3]

The protests lasted through a brutal winter. The government responded with violence — riot police beat protesters, snipers shot into the crowd. Over 100 protesters were killed. They are remembered as the "Heavenly Hundred."^[4]

In February 2014, Yanukovych fled to Russia. Ukraine's parliament voted to remove him from power. A new, pro-European government took over.

Crimea and the Donbas (2014)

Just weeks after Yanukovych fled, soldiers in unmarked green uniforms appeared across Crimea — a peninsula in southern Ukraine. Russia called them "local self-defense forces." Everyone else called them what they were: Russian soldiers without insignia, quickly nicknamed "little green men." They seized government buildings, military bases, and airports.^[1]

Russia then held a rushed referendum in Crimea — widely condemned as illegal — and declared Crimea part of Russia. It was the first time since World War II that a European country had annexed part of another country by force.^[1]

A month later, Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine's Donbas region (the areas around Donetsk and Luhansk) seized government buildings and declared independence from Ukraine. A grinding war began — trenches, artillery, snipers. By 2022, over 14,000 people had been killed in the Donbas conflict.^[2]

Full-Scale Invasion — February 24, 2022

At 5:00 AM on February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Over 200,000 troops attacked from three directions — north toward Kyiv, east into the Donbas, and south from Crimea. Missiles hit cities across the country. It was the largest military attack in Europe since World War II.^[3]

Most experts expected Ukraine to fall within days. They were wrong.

Key moments

🏛️ Battle of Kyiv (February–March 2022): Russia sent a massive convoy of tanks toward Kyiv, expecting to capture the capital quickly. Ukrainian forces fought back fiercely, destroying the convoy piece by piece. When the U.S. offered to evacuate President Zelenskyy, he refused with words that became famous around the world: "I need ammunition, not a ride." Russia retreated from Kyiv in early April.^[4]

🕯️ Bucha massacre (April 2022): When Russian troops withdrew from the suburbs of Kyiv, the world saw what they had left behind. In the town of Bucha, evidence of mass killings, torture, and violence against civilians shocked the world. Satellite images showed bodies lying in the streets. Russia denied responsibility, but the evidence was overwhelming.^[5]

🏭 Siege of Mariupol / Azovstal (February–May 2022): Russian forces surrounded the port city of Mariupol and bombarded it for over 80 days. The last Ukrainian defenders held out inside the Azovstal steel plant — a massive industrial complex with underground tunnels. They became a symbol of resistance before eventually surrendering in May 2022.^[6]

🇺🇦 Kherson liberated (November 2022): In a major victory, Ukraine recaptured the city of Kherson — the only regional capital that Russia had managed to take. Russian forces retreated across the Dnipro River.^[7]

☢️ Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant: Russian forces occupied Europe's largest nuclear power plant early in the invasion. The plant has been a constant source of worry — shelling near a nuclear reactor could cause a disaster like Chernobyl.^[8]

The front lines in 2026

Four years after Russia's full-scale invasion, the war is still going. The front lines have barely moved in months. Russia controls about 20% of Ukraine's territory — roughly 116,000 square kilometers. That's an area about the size of Ohio.^[1] Most of this land is in the east (the Donbas region) and the south (Crimea and parts of Zaporizhzhia). Fighting happens every single day along a front line that stretches hundreds of miles.

In early 2026, the pace of fighting slowed down. In February 2026, Ukrainian forces actually captured more territory than Russia did — the first time that had happened in months.^[2] But the overall picture hasn't changed much. Neither side has been able to make a big breakthrough.

Peace talks — so far

Many countries have tried to end the war through peace negotiations — talks where both sides try to agree on a deal to stop the fighting. After President Trump took office in January 2025, the U.S. pushed hard for a deal. But it hasn't been easy.

In January 2026, a group of 35 countries — called the "coalition of the willing" — met in Paris. France and the United Kingdom said they would send troops to Ukraine to help keep the peace if a ceasefire is reached. The U.S. said it would back security guarantees for Ukraine and help monitor a truce.^[3]

President Zelenskyy said that about 90% of a peace deal had been worked out in talks with the U.S. But the last 10% is the hardest part: territory. Russia wants to keep the land it has taken. Ukraine says it should not have to give up land that was seized by force. As of March 2026, Russia has refused calls for a ceasefire and has rejected direct negotiations with Zelenskyy.^[4]

The biggest obstacle: territory

The Donbas and Crimea remain the core obstacles to peace. Russia says these areas are now part of Russia. Ukraine — and most of the world — says they are still Ukrainian land, taken illegally. This is a problem no one has solved yet. Any peace deal will have to answer a very hard question: who keeps the land?

The human cost

The numbers are staggering. As of early 2026, about 5.9 million Ukrainians have fled the country as refugees. Another 3.7 million are displaced inside Ukraine — meaning they had to leave their homes but stayed within the country. In total, about 10.8 million people need humanitarian help.^[5]

Russia has repeatedly attacked Ukraine's power grid, leaving millions of people without heat or electricity during winter. Schools have been destroyed. Children study in bomb shelters or online. The World Bank estimates that rebuilding Ukraine will cost around $588 billion — one of the most expensive reconstruction efforts in history.^[1]

Global impact

This war has changed the world in ways you can feel even here. Ukraine and Russia are two of the world's biggest grain exporters. When the war disrupted grain shipments, food prices rose around the globe, hitting poorer countries the hardest. Energy prices spiked too, because Europe had relied on Russian natural gas.

The war also pushed countries to take sides. Finland and Sweden, which had stayed neutral for decades, both joined NATO — the military alliance designed to protect members from attack. Russia's invasion is exactly what Putin said he wanted to prevent, but his actions made NATO bigger and stronger.^[6]

🗺️ See the live front lines: The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) keeps an updated interactive map showing exactly where fighting is happening right now. View the ISW StoryMap →

From its founding over a thousand years ago to today's ongoing war, here's Ukraine's story in key moments.

These are four people you need to know to understand Ukraine's story — from a poet who fought for identity to the leaders shaping the war today.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy

President of Ukraine

Before becoming president in 2019, Zelenskyy was a comedian and actor who played a teacher-turned-president on a hit TV show. When Russia invaded, the world expected him to flee. Instead, he stayed in Kyiv and rallied his country with nightly video addresses. His refusal to leave — "I need ammunition, not a ride" — made him a symbol of Ukrainian resistance.

Photo: Ukrainian Presidential Office, CC-BY-4.0 via Wikimedia

Vladimir Putin

President of Russia

Putin has led Russia since 1999 — longer than most 8th graders have been alive. He ordered the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. He has argued that Ukraine and Russia are "one people" and that Ukraine has no right to join Western alliances like NATO or the EU.

Photo: Kremlin.ru, CC-BY-4.0 via Wikimedia

Taras Shevchenko

Poet & National Hero (1814–1861)

Born into serfdom, Shevchenko became Ukraine's greatest poet by writing in Ukrainian when the Russian Empire had banned the language. His poetry about freedom and Ukrainian identity inspired generations. He's still the most important cultural figure in Ukraine — there are more statues of him worldwide than almost any other poet.

Photo: Public domain (died 1861) via Wikimedia

Mykhailo Hrushevsky

First President of Ukraine (1917–1918)

A historian and scholar, Hrushevsky led the Ukrainian People's Republic — Ukraine's first attempt at modern independence. Though the republic was crushed by the Bolsheviks, Hrushevsky's work proving that Ukraine had its own distinct history (separate from Russia's) remains foundational. He appears on Ukraine's 50 hryvnia banknote today.

Photo: Public domain (died 1934) via Wikimedia

These videos will help you understand Ukraine's history and the current conflict. Start with the shorter ones and work your way up!

These resources are ranked by difficulty. Start with the easier ones and work your way up as you learn more.

⭐ Easier — Great Starting Points

⭐⭐ Medium — More Detail

⭐⭐⭐ Harder — Challenge Yourself