The Russia-Ukraine war, which started on Thursday 24, February 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine entered its first month on Thursday, 24 March 2022.
Both countries have recorded huge losses. Though the two sides have had a series of negotiations, what would be the outcome of the conflict is still unpredictable.
Here are 8 key updates to know about the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian conflict:
Refugees: An estimated four million people may have fled Ukraine to neighboring countries as refugees. Among the neighboring countries hosting Ukrainian Refugees are Poland, Romania, Moldova, Hungary, Russia, Slovakia, and Belarus.
According to the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Poland is hosting the highest number of Ukrainian refugees with about 2.1 million. This is followed by Romania hosting half a million Ukrainian refugees.
2. Civilian Casualties: So far the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) which tracks the losses on the battlefield, states that the conflict has recorded 2,421 civilian casualties in Ukraine: 925 killed and 1,496 injured.
This included a total of 925 killed (183 men, 137 women, 11 girls, and 25 boys, as well as 39 children and 530 adults whose sex is yet unknown). A total of 1,496 injured (163 men, 124 women, 22 girls, and 17 boys, as well as 60 children and 1,110 adults whose sex is yet unknown).
3. Ukraine’s NATO Membership Aspiration: Ukraine has greenlighted its readiness to jettison its decision to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) if Russia would withdraw its troops. Russia still wants assurances from Ukraine that it would maintain a neutral status like Finland.
4. Crimea: The controversial status of Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, is one of the difficult items during negotiations between the two sides. Though Russia claimed that a referendum was conducted in Crimea to ‘legalize’ its annexation. Ukraine is yet to state its position on Crimea.
5. Russia recognizes the breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk: The fate of these two Russian-speaking territories of Ukraine still hangs in the balance. Russia had claimed that the Ukrainian Government committed ‘genocide’ in both Donetsk and Luhansk, and used that as one of the reasons for the invasion of Ukraine.
6. Facebook and Instagram currently banned in Russia under ‘extremism’ law: A Russian court, some days ago labeled Meta as ‘extremist’. Since the war started, Russia has been restricting the operations of western media. Russia’s FSB security service accused Meta of creating an “alternative reality” in which “hatred for the Russians was kindled”.
READ ALSO: OIC FMs meet in Pakistan to discuss multiple challenges
Despite banning both Facebook and Instagram; WhatsApp which is also owned by Meta was left off the hook. Though Twitter isn’t banned, its use has been restricted by the Russian Government.
7. EU and US to pay for Russian Gas in ruble: As Russia struggles to survive heavy economic sanctions imposed on it by leading world countries for the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The country has resolved that henceforth payment for gas supplies to the European Union (EU) and United States (US) should be made in the ruble, the Russian Federation’s national currency. Russian President, Vladimir Putin was said, ‘I have decided to implement a set of measures to transfer payment for our gas supplies to unfriendly countries into Russian rubles,” Putin said during a televised government meeting…It is clear that delivering our goods to the European Union, the United States and receiving dollars, euros, other currencies no longer makes sense to us,’
8. The US formally accuses Russia of war crimes in Ukraine: In making Russia accountable for intentionally targeting civilians, hospitals, and schools for attacks, the United States has formally asserted that Russia’s forces have committed war crimes in Ukraine.
