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War in Donbas
2014–2022 war between Ukraine and Russia / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The war in Donbas,[lower-alpha 3] or Donbas war, was a phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the Donbas region of Ukraine. The war began in April 2014, when a commando unit headed by Russian citizen Igor Girkin seized Sloviansk in Donetsk oblast.[20][21][3][22] The Ukrainian military launched an operation against them.[23][24] The war continued until subsumed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.[25]
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War in Donbas | |||||||||
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Part of the Russo-Ukrainian War | |||||||||
Top row: Pro-Russian paramilitaries in Donbas. Middle: Aftermath of the Battle of Donetsk Airport; damaged buildings in Spartak. Bottom: Ukrainian T-64BV tank during the Battle of Debaltseve; Donbas Battalion soldiers on a BTR-60 in the Donbas, August 2014. | |||||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||||
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Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Units involved | |||||||||
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Strength | |||||||||
64,000 troops[9] | |||||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||||
* Includes 400–500 Russian servicemen (per the United States Department of State, March 2015)[19] |
In March 2014, following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, anti-revolution and pro-Russian protests began in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, collectively 'the Donbas'. These began as Russia invaded Crimea. Armed Russian-backed separatists seized Ukrainian government buildings and declared the Donetsk and Luhansk republics (DPR and LPR) as independent states, leading to conflict with Ukrainian forces.[26] Russia covertly supported the separatists with troops and weaponry. It only admitted sending "military specialists",[27][28] but later acknowledged the separatists as Russian combat veterans.[29] In April 2014, Ukraine launched a counter-offensive, called the "Anti-Terrorist Operation"[30] (ATO), later renamed the "Joint Forces Operation" (JFO).[31][32] By August 2014, Ukraine had re-taken most separatist-held territory and nearly regained control of the Russia–Ukraine border.[33] In response, Russia covertly sent troops, tanks and artillery into the Donbas.[34][35][36] The Russian incursion helped pro-Russian forces regain much of the territory they had lost.[31][37][38]
Ukraine, Russia, the DPR and LPR signed a ceasefire agreement, the Minsk Protocol, in September 2014.[39] Ceasefire breaches became rife, 29 in all,[40] and heavy fighting resumed in January 2015, during which the separatists captured Donetsk Airport. A new ceasefire, Minsk II, was agreed on 12 February 2015. Immediately after, separatists renewed their offensive on Debaltseve and forced Ukraine's military to withdraw.[41] Skirmishes continued but the front line did not change. Both sides fortified their position by building networks of trenches, bunkers and tunnels, resulting in static trench warfare.[42][43] Stalemate led to the war being called a "frozen conflict",[44] but Donbas remained a war zone, with dozens killed monthly.[45] In 2017, on average a Ukrainian soldier died every three days,[46] with an estimated 40,000 separatist and 6,000 Russian troops in the region.[47][48] By the end of 2017, OSCE observers had counted around 30,000 people in military gear crossing from Russia at the two border checkpoints it was allowed to monitor,[49] and documented military convoys crossing from Russia covertly.[50] All sides agreed to a roadmap for ending the war in October 2019,[51] but it remained unresolved.[52][53] During 2021, Ukrainian fatalities rose sharply and Russian forces massed around Ukraine's borders.[54] Russia recognized the DPR and LPR as independent states on 21 February 2022 and deployed troops to those territories. On 24 February, Russia began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, subsuming the war in Donbas into it.
About 14,000 people were killed in the war: 6,500 Russian and Russian proxy forces, 4,400 Ukrainian forces, and 3,400 civilians on both sides.[17] Most civilian casualties were in the first year.[17]