1 year on
It’s been exactly 365 days since the Russian invasion of Ukraine and, with more than 8 million Ukrainian refugees recorded across Europe and thousands of civilian casualties, the war continues to take a tragic toll on the Ukrainian people.
Nations around the world have reacted by sending arms, financial assistance and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. President Biden’s surprise visit to Kyiv this week, traveling aboard ‘Rail Force One’, was a clear sign that US support is set to continue.
Russia has certainly suffered on the world stage, with over 1,000 companies announcing voluntary withdrawals from the country. Politically, sanctions of varying severity have been the medium of choice for many countries to exert pressure. In 2022, more than 11,000 new sanctions were implemented, leaving Russia as the most heavily-sanctioned country on Earth, causing the economy to shrink 3% last year. EU reliance on Russian coal, as just one example, decreased from nearly 40% in May 2022 to essentially nothing by the end of the year.
In addition to the loss of life, the displacement impact on Ukraine and its neighboring countries remains immense. Poland hosts more Ukrainian refugees than any other country and is still home to more than a million Ukrainians who, even a year on, are still unsure when it will be safe to return home. Indeed, data from the UNHCR shows that some 20,000 Ukrainians are still crossing the border every day in both directions.
