The Russia-Ukraine war began in February of 2022, and is just as prominent now as it was then. Russia began this war by claiming it was a “special military operation” that led into Ukraine. It is said that Vladimir Putin’s initial goal was to take over Ukraine and dispose of their government system. The elected president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has been defending his country both in and out of the battlefield.
Currently, attacks continue, and prisoners of war have been taken on each side. Russia handed over 108 prisoners and claimed the other two wanted to stay in Russia.
Russia released a drone attack on Kyiv which resulted in the death of a pregnant woman and her husband. Zelensky responded with a plea to stop this terror on the country and said, “When we talk about Ukraine’s need for air and missile defense, we are talking about real lives that are taken by terrorists” (CNN article). While Russia holds more weapons and air missiles, Ukraine is doing as much as it can to minimize damage and lives lost. The White House openly criticized the attacks Russia has made.
More than a dozen explosions landed in the Russian region, Belgorod, from across the border of Ukraine. People speculate that these bombs are a part of the increasing violence in Belgorod which shares a border with Kharkiv, the northeastern region of Ukraine.
Outside of the war, the EU (European Union) approved a military training mission for thousands of Ukrainian troops in Europe. They plan to give 500 million euros or 486 million dollars in funds for weaponry. On October 17th, NATO began their annual nuclear exercises in Europe. despite the current divided state of the continent.
As these events and many more take place in the last month or couple days, it is visible the conflict is increasing between the two countries. Putin threatens that he will do anything to defend Russian territory. Tension and violence between Russia and Ukraine increase as the conflict also increases.