Ukraine bolstering its warfighting and defense industrial capacities as the war enters into its fourth year

Ukraine and its people have already endured three years of bloody war with nuclear armed Russia who is pretending to be an empire. This in itself an unprecedented and incredible feat.

Until February 24, 2022, the main events of the modern Russian-Ukrainian war took place in the east of our country and did not go beyond the scope of a local conflict.

But by launching a full-scale war invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin intended to destroy Ukrainian statehood forever. This treacherous attack, as we see now, three years later, dealt a fatal blow to the world order created after World War II.

Resisting the Russian aggressor, the Ukrainian people demonstrated for the whole world to see the courage, will for resilience, and unity in the face of a cruel enemy with significant numerical superiority in manpower and materiel.

In this article Ukrinform is recalling the crucial milestones of this war as Ukraine marks three years since it began on February 24, 2022.

Invasion and resilience

The war “officially” became inevitable on February 21, 2022 after the Russian Security Council recognized the “independence” of the territories Russia has occupied since 2014 – the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR) and Luhansk People’s Republic (LNR). The following day, Russia ratified the “Treaties on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance” with the DNR and LNR, which included the provision of military assistance. At the same time, Putin put forward three demands for Kyiv: to recognize Russia’s annexation of Crimea, to abandon Ukraine’s NATO membership aspirations, and to “resolve the Donbas issue through peaceful negotiations and the implementation of the Minsk agreements”.

This all was unacceptable to Ukraine then and remains so today.

The large-scale invasion began at around 4:00 a.m. on February 24, 2022. At around 5 a.m., dozens of cities across the country, including the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, were hit by missile strikes. Soon after, the Ukrainian border guard service announced that its border posts with Russia and Belarus had come under fire.

At 5 am, a video was released of Putin justifying the aggression, which he referred to as “special military operation” (SVO). Its goals, in addition to the “defense” of the DNR and LNR, included the “denazification” and “demilitarization” of Ukraine, as well as the conviction of Ukrainian politicians and military personnel allegedly involved in “bloody crimes.”

Within minutes, Russian missiles attacked Ukrainian airfields and military facilities throughout Ukraine, and an all-out war invasion by Russian army from the territory of Belarus and currently occupied Crimea began.

The enemy was holping to seize control of Kyiv in a flash operation, in belief that this blitzkrieg would force the de facto Ukrainian authorities to surrender de jure. On a parallel track, the adversary struck from the north at Chernihiv, Sumy and Kharkiv cities, and from the south at Odessa, Mykolaiv, Kherson and Mariupol.

According to the Kremlin’s plan, Russian forces were to quickly advance to the capita, Kyiv, and capture the Government Quarter. After the removal of Zelensky as President, a “session” of the Verkhovna Rada was to be held to appoint one of the pro-Russian politicians as parliament speaker, meaning he would automatically take over as interim President. And then a pro-Russian proxy government was to be installed.

During the first three days, the invading troops advanced significantly in all border regions and reached the outskirts of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Kherson, Mykolaiv, and Mariupol, while Sumy was isolated and surrounded by Russian forces. A dire situation developed in the south, where the invaders, almost unhindered, negotiated the bridges to reach Chongar and Genichesk and the Perekop Isthmus, and later crossed over the Dnieper to capture Kherson. The cities of Melitopol, Berdyansk, and Tokmak in Zaporizhia oblast were also captured, and Mariupol was encircled from the west.

The first strategic defensive operation (February 24 - April 2022)

The Battle of Kyiv (February 24 - April 1, 2022) became a significant component to the first strategic operation of the Defense Forces of Ukraine. The enemy was advancing on the capital city in columns of armored vehicles moving from three different directions in order to quickly break through to the center of Kyiv. These intentions were thwarted by obstinate resistance of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The invading forces entrenched themselves along the Makariv-Horenychi-Bucha-Demydiv line. However, due to the futility of attempts to break through, the Russian war command, in late March, decided to withdraw its troops from the Kyiv region. Units of the Defense Forces were able to stop their advance along all axes.

Against the background of Russia’s war aggression, President Zelenskyy imposed martial law and declared general mobilization. Lines of people willing to defend the country were lined up at military enlistment and recruitment centers. Contrary to initial plans, the Russians failed to capture major cities in the country’s northeast and east.

The enemy's attempts to seize the Hostomel airport outside Kyiv were defeated. An attempted troop landing from the air at the Vasylkiv airport was also unsuccessful. This rendered it impossible to capture the capital city in a lightning-fast manner, as planned by the Kremlin. At the same time, the Russians were able to advance southward and seize control of Kherson, but their further offensive on Mykolaiv was broken off, as were attempts to capture Odesa. That said, they managed to advance towards Zaporizhzhia city and take Mariupol city into encirclement.

To maintain the controllability of the country, part of government officials were evacuated to the western Ukrainian regions, but senior leaders remained in the capital city. A notable fact that is still remembered: the embassies of major Western countries left the Ukrainian capital, fearing that Ukraine would not be able to hold back the invasion.

However, we must give them credit for the fact that, when it became obvious that the Russian blitzkrieg had failed to succeed, Western countries quickly began providing financial assistance, deploying military supplies, and imposing sanctions on Russia (in particular, more than $300 billion worth of Russian sovereign assets were immobilized).

On March 2, 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted — by an overwhelming majority of 141 against 5 — a resolution rejecting the Russian Federation's brutal invasion of Ukraine and demanding that Russia immediately withdraw its forces and abide by international law. The resolution “deplores in the strongest terms” the aggression by Russia and affirms the international community’s commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine. Only 5 UN member states voted against it: Russia, Belarus, DPRK (North Korea), Eritrea and Syria. Many of Russia’s closest partners did not follow their voting pattern.

The situation on the battlefield was also changing not in Russia's favor. The defense forces managed to stabilize the situation and inflict catastrophic losses on the aggressor. Multi-kilometer columns of Russian vehicles were blocked on roads, where they were meticulously destroyed by Ukrainian artillery. In those battles, the elite of the Russian army was practically fully eliminated. At the end of March 2022, the occupiers began to withdraw their troops from Kyiv (the Kyiv region was finally liberated on April 2, 2022), and then from other northeastern and eastern regions of Ukraine.

Photo Destroyed Russian armored vehicles abandoned on a street in Bucha, outside Kyiv, after liberation from Russian occupation, April 7, 2022. Photo Credit: Hanna Voitenko/via Ukrinform

After the liberation of some Ukrainian territories, large-scale war crimes committed by Russian invaders against civilians were revealed, which was seen most strikingly in the town of Bucha outside of Kyiv. The mass killings of Ukrainian civilians, accompanied by kidnappings, torture, rape, including of children, and looting, brought the whole world to a shock. During the 33 days of occupation of the Kyiv region, the Russians killed more than 1,400 Ukrainians here, among them 37 children. More than 175 people were found in mass graves and torture chambers in Bucha. In total, in Bucha alone, Russian soldiers committed around 9,000 war crimes, and this is only what has been proven by verified evidence.

Since mid-April 2022, Russia has launched a new offensive, declaring “liberation of Donbas” as primary goal to be achieved. The defense of Mariupol, which lasted 82 days, added a heroic page to the history of resilience to Russian aggression, and its last stronghold on the territory of the Azovstal steel plant became known worldwide.

The destruction and sinking of the Russian Black Sea Fleet’s flagship, the cruiser Moskva, by the Defense Forces on April 14, 2022 made a landmark milestone in the war.

The second strategic defensive operation (May - August 2022)

Following the failure of the initial plan for a quick breakthrough and capture of Ukraine, the adversary redeployed its troops and focused its efforts on capturing Donbas. The Defense Forces of Ukraine switched to stabilization actions, and the extent of hostilities narrowed to two operational zones - Eastern and Southwestern.

In this context it is worth mentioning the hostilities on the Lyman, Avdiivka, and Novopavlivka fronts, as well as the restoration of Ukrainian military control over Zmiiniy (‘Snake’) Island in the Black Sea. This made it impossible for the Russian Black Sea Fleet ships to be present and operate in the northwestern part of the Black Sea and effectively precluded a Marine Landing in the Odesa region.

International assistance to Ukraine, primarily with armaments and materiel, had increased with the beginning of the Battle of Donbas. The range of assistance expanded dramatically to include heavy weapons among other supplies. The Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 nations that meets monthly to discuss Ukraine's security needs, first met in April 2022 at Ramsten Air Base in Germany, with attendees from 42 countries.

In May, the US and Canadian embassies resumed their work in Kyiv. US President Joe Biden signed the Lend-Lease law for Ukraine. Finland and Sweden, seeing once again in Bucha what Russia is, decided to join NATO.

Western arms supplies and the skillful actions by the Defense Forces began to change the trajectory of the war in July 2022. And on August 29, Ukraine launched a counteroffensive operation along the entire front line, achieving particularly notable success in the Kharkiv region, where an area of ​​up to 8,500 km and 388 settlements were liberated from Russian occupying forces.

Strategic offensive operations (September - December 2022)

Kharkiv offensive operation. The adversary kept its offensive flow going in the Donetsk operational area, having redeployed some its forces to the direction of Kherson. This enabled the Defense Forces of Ukraine to launch an offensive operation in the Kharkiv region on September 5. The enemy’s units were defeated and disoriented. It was only in mid-October that the aggressor was able to gain a foothold on the Svatove - Kreminna line. Ukrainians liberated up to 500 settlements, including the cities of Izyum, Balakliya, Vovchansk, and Kupyansk.

Photo Ukrainian soldiers driving in an infantry mobility vehicle along a road to Izyum, Kharkiv region, after its liberation from Russian occupation; September 19, 2022 Photo Credit: Vyacheslav Madievskyi/via Ukrinform

 Ukrainian soldiers driving in an infantry mobility vehicle along a road to Izyum, Kharkiv region, after its liberation from Russian occupation; September 19, 2022

Kherson offensive operation. From August 29 to September 23, Ukrainian forces reached the administrative border with Kherson and Dnipropetrovsk regions and began to create a bridgehead for advancement. In November, units of the Defense Forces of Ukraine reached the western bank of the Dnieper River, while the Russians, in order to spare at least some of their manpower, withdrew to the eastern bank. Thanks to the success of this operation, Ukrainian troops liberated Kherson city and more than 200 other populated centers from Russian occupying forces.

In response to Ukraine's military successes, Russia attempted to illegally annex the Ukrainian territories its military had been able to seize. Fake "referendums" were held, and Putin announced the expansion of the territory of the Russian Federation into four new regions -- Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia – on September 30. None of the countries, excepting North Korea recognized this annexation, and, on October 12, 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution rejecting the “referendums” as illegitimate. The National Defense and Security Council of Ukraine, by its decision issued on September 30, announced that Ukraine would not hold peace talks with Russia while Putin was president.

The aggressor country began bombarding Ukrainian civilian infrastructure with missiles and drones, seeking to trigger a humanitarian catastrophe.

Ukraine took actions to decentralize its energy grid and safeguard power infrastructure, while the country’s allies committed to provide advanced air defenses and agreed to supply combat aircraft.

Ukraine responded to Russian attempts to annex its territory and pound civilian targets by continuing its counteroffensive operation, liberating Kherson city on November 11.

These offensive operations differed fundamentally in terms of the tactics used. In the Kharkiv region, this included high maneuverability, breakthroughs by mobile groups, and disrupting command and control of enemy’s forces, while operations in the Kherson region were more focused on imposing significant pressure on Russia, disrupting enemy’s logistics, cutting off enemy forces from resupply and replenishment. Basically, the liberation of the Kharkiv region and the west-bank Kherson region convincingly demonstrated the increased operational skills and strength of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

As of late 2022, the Armed Forces of Ukraine had liberated 40 percent of the territory that Russian forces have occupied since February 2022.

The third strategic defensive operation

The successful operations by the Defense Forces of Ukraine forced the Russian leadership to hold a partial mobilization, send thousands of civilian prisoners into war zone, and shift its entire economy to war production. The adversary managed to increase the number of its troops deployed on Ukrainian battlefields and ramp up pressure on Ukrainian positions in the Eastern operational zone.

During the first year of the Great War, the Defense Forces of Ukraine thwarted all of Putin’s plans, forcing him to abandon the capture of Kyiv, Marine Landing in the Odessa region, and the reach to Transnistria.

One of Ukraine’s greatest successes achieved in 2023 was the elimination of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet’s supremacy on the Black Sea naval theater. Under the blows of Ukrainian missiles and drones, primarily surface-based ones, the Russian fleet was effectively forced to abandon Sevastopol – its main base – and redeploy its ships from occupied Crimea to Novorossiysk. For the first time in War History, Ukraine, a country with virtually no naval fleet of its own, was able to defeat a naval monster such as Russia thanks to the use of the latest technologies.

South Offensive operation and the enemy’s “continuous” counterattack

Ukraine tried to strategically counterattack in the South, but this did not bring the results as expected. The Ukrainians were unable to break through the enemy’s deeply echeloned defensive lines. This was not least because the allies, fearing “escalation”, did not provide the Armed Forces of Ukraine with the armaments that they critically needed, first and foremost combat aircraft for direct support of the advancing troops, which effectively precluded the full use of armored vehicles.

Over the course of the past 16 months, the Russian troops have been continuously advancing along almost the entire frontline -- an offensive that must be continuously supported by manpower, weaponry, equipment, supplies, and adequate staff planning. The fact that Russia can conduct offensive operations for that long will also be included in textbooks on the history of the art of war. But we must also appreciate that maintaining a sufficiently successful defense against that lengthy offensive and preventing the collapse of the frontline is a record in itself and an incredible achievement. And this will also be included in the textbooks.

This all is despite the presence of more than 620,000 Russian military personnel on Ukrainian territory. Overall, the Russians launched 2,400 missiles (of which 1,162 were shot down), 10,951 strike drones (10,416 were shot down), and 32,812 precision glide bombs (the first downings were reported in 2025) against Ukraine in 2024 alone.

Meanwhile, Russia continued missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian civilian targets, while the Ukrainian side responded with drone attacks on military targets deep inside Russian territory. In 2024, Ukraine’s military hit 377 military targets on Russian territory.

Strategic Offensive Operation (Kursk Oblast, Russian Federation) and Russian Response

Fighting in Kursk Oblast of Russia began on August 6, 2024, when the Armed Forces of Ukraine crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border near the city of Sudzha. By the end of August, Ukrainian troops controlled about 1,100 km² of Kursk Oblast of the Russian Federation.

Photo Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers in Sudzha, Russia’s Kursk oblast, August 2024. Screenshot from a video posted on social media by soldiers from the 99th Mechanized Battalion under the 61st Separate Steppe Brigade

Russia-Ukraine war saw significant shifts in the second half of 2024. Russia was seeking to extend the line of contact, launched a new offensive on the Kharkiv region and was preparing for an offensive on the Sumy region. The defense forces thwarted these plans: not only did they hold back the Russian advance, but, on August 6, Ukrainian forces crossed the border into the Kursk region of the Russian Federation. Contrary to pledges by Russian generals, they have not been able to knock Ukrainian troops out of their territory after six months from Ukraine’s incursion. It must be realized: had Ukrainian troops not entered the Kursk region of the Russian Federation in August 2024, the Russian army would have invaded the Ukrainian Sumy region. Therefore, this operation was appropriate and successful.

Being unable to turn the tide in the war, Russia again resorted to missile terror and nuclear threats. On November 21, the Russian forces launched the Oreshnik intermediate-range ballistic missile at the city of Dnipro for the first time since the full-scale war began, targeting Yuzhnmash (aka Pivdenmash) rocket and missile maker.

The Russian Federation has also taken a course towards internationalizing the armed conflict. Military personnel from North Korea have been engaged in Russia’s war on Ukraine. In such a circumstance, Kyiv raised the possibility of achieving NATO membership by an accelerated procedure and expanding the level of weapons and equipment supplies from allies.

That year was the first to see Ukrainian military personnel being trained on foreign-supplied weapons and military equipment in-country instead of going abroad, thus achieving a substantial cost and time saving, and enabling an increase in the number of trained instructors.

The duration of basic general military training (BGMT) has been extended to 1.5 months, enabling an improvement of the training program and encompassing modern elements, in particular electronic warfare and UAVs. The possibility of extending the duration of basic training to 2 months is being considered. It is furthermore planned to introduce a 14-day post-BGMT adaptation course in active military units before being allowed to perform combat missions. After all, the better a soldier is trained and more mentally stable and strong, the stronger our positions at the frontline.

Russia has accumulated unsustainable personnel and vehicle losses in the last three years since Russia's full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022.  Russian forces have lost over 10,100 tanks, 21,100 armored combat vehicles, 23,600 artillery systems, 1,080 air defense systems, 1,300 multiple launch rocket systems, 28 ships and boats, 1 submarine, 370 combat airplanes, 331 helicopters, 38,500 motor vehicles and fuel tankers, and 3,760 pieces of specialized equipment presumably destroyed and damaged in the three years of Russia's full-scale invasion. Furthermore, Russian forces have lost almost 870,000 personnel, including about 250,000 dead (meaning that the number of sick, injured and wounded has reached 2.6 million, bringing the total loss to 3.47 million). Russian opposition outlets published a joint report on February 24 wherein they used the Russian Register of Inheritance Cases (RND) to estimate that at least 160,000 to 165,000 Russian servicemembers have died in the past three years of the war. As previously reported, Russia’s military suffered more than 434,000 casualties in 2024 alone, and had lost at least 66,000 to 88,000 personnel during the first two years of the war — suggesting that Russian losses significantly increased in 2024.

In November 2024, the average daily losses the Russian occupying forces suffered in Ukraine reached a record high 2030 personnel killed and wounded.

The Russian forces enjoyed a 10-to-1 artillery advantage in 2023. Today, this has decreased to almost 1:2. Over the past year, the Russian forces have lost 13,000 artillery systems destroyed or damaged, compared to 8,400 systems lost over the previous two years. Successful counter-battery combat, supported by effective drone operations, puts an end to the dominance of Russian guns on the battlefield.

Drones and electronic warfare: a fundamentally new type of war

Finally, the Ukrainian Army transitions from the brigade to corps system have got underway, aimed to bolster the forces’ warfighting and organizational capabilities.

Moreover, instead of establishing new unexperienced brigades, already existing successful units are being scaled up and replenished.

The Unmanned Systems Forces, a new branch of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was created, specializing in drone and anti-drone warfare and in the use of unmanned military robots on the battlefield on land, at sea, and in the air, making Ukraine the first country to have a branch of its military dedicated to unmanned systems and the legislator of military fashion and military school of thought.

Photo Zaporizhzhia front. An aerial reconnaissance soldier with the 108th separate territorial defense Brigade carries a "Leleka-100" UAV; February 15, 2024. Photo Credit: Dmytro Smolyenko/via Ukrinform

Drone production has increased 10-fold in a year. Ukrainian drones have begun to be used to massively shoot down enemy’s reconnaissance drones, which has significantly worsened their situational awareness. The enemy’s Lancet-class single attack drones are also being shot down in increasing numbers and frequency. The first successful attacks on Russian helicopters have also been reported as Ukrainian naval drones are being upgraded with anti-aircraft weapons.

Overall, thanks to Western investments and the efforts of our enthusiasts, engineers, workers, military personnel, and government officials, the domestic defense-industrial capacity has grown sixfold over the past two years.

This year, Ukraine is expected to deploy drone swarms against Russian forces. Such swarms, if used in sufficient numbers, and the enemy’s absence of similar capabilities can significantly change the pattern of war in Ukraine’s favor.

The competition between the warring parties in the deployment of ground robotic platforms continues.

The F-16 aircraft have significantly strengthened Ukrainian air defenses. Overall, our Air Force performed more than 20,000 sorties over the past year.

In addition, the first French-supplied Mirage-2000 fighters have come to fly the Ukrainian skies.

Ukraine is planning to launch domestic production of explosives this year, while production lines for some calibers of shells, mines, and small-arms ammunition had been launched even earlier.

In 2023-2024, Ukraine ramped up domestic production of artillery munitions by threefold, armored personnel carriers by fivefold, anti-tank projectiles by twofold, and ammunition by 2.5 fold. In total, Ukraine produces 30 percent of its weapons requirement domestically. It could be twice as much, but we would like to thank everyone involved for what has already been done.

In addition, to meet the domestic demand for military electronic components, the Ministry of Digital Transformation intends to establish manufacturing of chips sized at 180, 130, and 110 nanometers. While these are not the most advanced technologies—compared to Intel’s 1.8 nm and TSMC’s 4 nm chips—they can serve industries such as defense, agriculture, and automotive manufacturing. Ukraine’s broader WINWIN Digital Development Strategy projected until 2030 aims to establish the country as a global technology hub. The plan identifies 14 key sectors, including defense technology, medical technology, and space innovation, positioning Ukraine as a leader in high-tech development.

Photo Russian tank destroyed and abandoned in Novodarivka village on the boundary between Zaporizhzhia and Donetsk regions; July 21, 2023. Photo Credit: Dmytro Smolyenko/via Ukrinform

As the war is entering into its fourth year, Ukraine has begun a new round of tests --political, psychological, economic and military. Ukraine continues to hold on, day after day, month after month, year after year. This is a genuine feat of the people. Negotiations on a ceasefire kicked off in February 2025 in a format that is currently seen as incomprehensible. The challenges remained as they were three years ago, but Ukraine has become different, stronger and, as no one is surprised, capable of changing this world.

Mykola Zoryk, Kyiv

Headline Photo Credit: Vyacheslav Madievsky/via Ukrinform: Izyum, Kharkiv region, after liberation from Russian occupation, September 15, 2022