Ukrainian President

Volodymyr Zelensky

said that almost a third of Ukraine's territory is contaminated by mines and Russian shells that have not exploded.

"174,000 square kilometers of the territory of Ukraine are contaminated by landmines laid by the occupier and Russian projectiles of various types that have not exploded.

This polluted square is like two territories of Austria.

These are hundreds of thousands of anti-personnel mines, rockets from jet artillery, aerial bombs, mortar shells that did not explode and remained stuck in the fields, in the remains of buildings, on the sides of roads, in gardens and parks, in vegetable gardens," Uladzimir Zelensky said in his speech to deputies of the Austrian parliament.

The area of ​​Ukraine is 603.7 thousand square kilometers, Austria - 83.8 thousand square kilometers.

The Ukrainian president told how last year, before their departure from the Kyiv region, Russian soldiers had deliberately set up lines and left grenades in residential buildings.

"A hand grenade that one of the Russian soldiers disguised under a plastic cup.

This one was in the Bravar district of the Kyiv region.

A grenade under the barrel, which the Russians placed in an ordinary house under the lid of a piano.

It was in the city of Bucha.

A hand grenade used to detonate a locker in the kitchen of the house.

The owner of this house was shot by Russian soldiers, his body was buried in the yard.

It was also in Buchi, by the way," said Zelensky.

"An anti-personnel mine, disguised as an allegedly ordinary bag with things.

It was in Irpyan, Kyiv region.

A hand grenade that was left in an ordinary house in a washing machine so that the explosion occurred when a person simply opened the washing machine.

It was in an ordinary house in an ordinary village of the Kyiv region," he added.

Zelensky is convinced that all these facts are part of Russia's self-portrait, which it creates with its aggression and war in Ukraine.

These days, victims of the Russian occupation of Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy regions are commemorated in Ukraine and the anniversary of the retreat of Russian troops from the north of Ukraine is celebrated.

March 30 marked 400 days since the beginning of the Russian military invasion of Ukraine.

Russia's war against Ukraine

  • At 5:00 a.m. on February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the start of a military operation against Ukraine in the Donbass at the request of the "DPR" and "LPR" groups.

    On February 21, during a televised address to Russians, Putin called the so-called "DPR" and "LPR" independent states within the regions.

    On February 22, the Federation Council ratified this decision.

  • Russian troops attacked, including from the territory of Belarus, using airfields, bases and roads.

    Representatives of Lukashenka's regime justify the war, his opponents consider the territory of Belarus to be occupied, many call for resistance to the Russian invaders.

  • In 2022, 19 Belarusians were killed in Ukraine fighting for its independence.

    It is known about two Belarusian soldiers who were captured by the Russians.

  • On March 30, the UN approved the composition of an independent commission that will investigate Russian war crimes in Ukraine.

    It included people who worked in the analysis of the genocide in Rwanda and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

  • Contrary to Putin's statements about attacks only on military facilities, the Russians are bombing schools, kindergartens and residential areas of Ukrainian cities.

    The Russians are using banned weapons, including cluster bombs, against civilians.

  • On April 2, after the liberation of the town of Bucha near Kyiv, photojournalists published dozens of photographs showing hundreds of dead people, victims of mass murders committed by Russian troops.

    Many are buried in spontaneous mass graves.

    The Russian occupation also brought great destruction to the people of Barodyan.

    It is also known about a number of rapes, including babies.

  • On May 9, the US President signed the Land Leasing Law.

    This law restores the program from the Second World War, which will speed up the supply of weapons to Ukraine and increase the amount of such assistance.

  • On July 29, as a result of an attack on the colony in Alenivka, at least 53 Ukrainian prisoners who defended the "Azovstal" plant in Mariupol and surrendered after completing their combat mission were killed.

    The Russians accused Ukraine of the attack, the Ukrainian side declared the deliberate killing of prisoners by the Russian side.

    The Russian occupation authorities prevented the UN and Red Cross missions from entering Alenavka.

  • During the six months of the war, Russia was able to occupy about 20% of the Ukrainian territory.

    In March, the area of ​​occupied land reached 30%.

    However, at the end of the month, Russian troops retreated from the north of Ukraine, as well as from most of the Kharkiv region.

    At the end of August, Crimea, Luhansk and Kherson regions were completely occupied.

    And also 50% of the territory of the Donetsk region, about 70% of the Zaporizhia region, approximately 30% of the Kharkiv region.

  • Since February 24, Russia has captured only one regional center - Kherson.

    Russian troops retreated from it and from the right-bank part of the Kherson region in November 2022.

    The city was occupied by Russian troops in the first days of the war without actually fighting.

    Kyiv suspects part of the former leadership of Kherson and the region of treason.

    The former head of the SBU of the Kharkiv region was also detained on such suspicion.

  • In September, Ukrainian troops launched a large-scale counteroffensive, as a result of which Russian forces began to rapidly flee from their positions in the Kharkiv region.

  • On September 21, Putin announced the mobilization in Russia.

    After this statement, thousands of Russians went to the border crossings and began to leave for Georgia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Mongolia, Finland and other countries.

    In Russia itself, opponents of the war set fire to several military units.

    Even people without military experience began to be conscripted into the army, despite promises that only experienced ones would go to war.

    The mobilization of men into the Russian army also takes place in the occupied territories of Ukraine.

  • On October 2, Putin submitted a bill to the Russian parliament, which is an attempt to annex parts of four regions of Ukraine.

    Two new republics - "LPR" and "DNR" - and two regions - Zaporizhia and Kherson will be part of Russia.

    But thanks to the counteroffensive of the Ukrainians, the borders drawn in Moscow are not fully controlled by the occupying forces.

  • In October, Ukrainian troops successfully continued their counteroffensive, at the beginning of October they liberated Liman and Yampal, as well as significantly approached Svatov in the Luhansk region, and from there the way to Severodanetsk and Lysichansk opens.

  • On the morning of October 10, the Russians began intensive shelling of Ukrainian territory, including the center of Kyiv.

    Rockets also reached Lviv, depriving the city of electricity.

    Since then, Russia has carried out about 10 missile attacks on infrastructure facilities and other civilian targets on the territory of Ukraine.

  • On October 10, Lukashenka held a meeting with the Security Council and announced the deployment of a joint grouping of troops with Putin.

  • On the evening of November 15, Russia fired 100 missiles across the territory of Ukraine, primarily at energy facilities, and in Poland, two missiles fell in the village of Przewodau, 6 km from the border with Ukraine, killing two people.

    The Polish authorities summoned the Russian ambassador for explanations.

    Then it turned out that this was probably the result of the work of the Ukrainian Air Force, which shot down a Russian missile.

  • In November, with the onset of cold weather, Russia intensified its missile attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

    As a result, many Ukrainian cities and part of Moldova were left without electricity and water.

    Ukraine called an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council.

  • On January 1, 2023, the Department of Strategic Communications of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported the death of almost 400 Russians during the attack on the building of the Polytechnic School No. 19 in Makeyevka.

    Russian soldiers were there and mobilized.

    The Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation recognized 89 killed.

  • On January 14, 2023, as a result of another shelling, a Russian missile hit a high-rise building in the city of Dnipro, killing and injuring dozens of people.

    The rescue operation to find the bodies stretched for several days.

  • In February, they take place for Bakhmut, Kramyannaya, Svatava.

    However, US intelligence noted that the Russians do not have enough potential for a full-scale offensive, and the British Ministry of Defense said that the Russians suffered the biggest losses in the year in the first half of February.

  • On March 25, Putin noted that the construction of a storage facility for tactical nuclear weapons will be completed in Belarus on July 1.

  • Independent verification of information about military actions provided by officials of various parties is still impossible.