Russia took over a part of Ukraine called Crimea in 2014. It has now launched a much bigger invasion.
What you should know about the news everyone is talking about
The biggest news in the world right now is Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine. People are shocked that Russia’s leader has chosen to go to war against a neighbour. The war is worrying because it will cause unnecessary suffering.
Why did Russia do it?
Russia’s President is a man named Vladimir Putin. When Mr Putin was younger, his country was much larger and more powerful. It was called the Soviet Union and it contained not only Russia but also many other smaller nations, including what is now Ukraine.
The Soviet Union was a communist country that wasted a lot of money building up its military power while its citizens remained poor. The country collapsed in 1991 and broke up into different independent states. This brought freedom and economic progress to the people of the former Soviet Union.
Mr Putin, however, felt that the break-up of the Soviet Union was a tragedy. He believes that Russia should still control what goes on in neighbouring countries that the Soviet Union once ruled. He even dreams of the 19th century Russian Empire, which was the world’s third largest empire in history.
Mr Putin was angry that Ukraine did not want to accept Russia’s leadership. Instead, Ukraine became friendly with its western neighbours in Europe, and Russia’s big rival, the United States. Ukraine was thinking of joining a US-led defence club called NATO. This was too much for Mr Putin to tolerate. On 24 February, he ordered his huge military to invade.
Some Russians are against the war. But Russia is not a democracy. Mr Putin’s government punishes severely citizens who oppose his wishes. So peace-loving Russians could not stop their President’s dangerous plan.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.
How are Ukrainians responding?
Ukraine is quite a large country. It is around the size of Myanmar or Thailand, and has a population of 44 million, which is more than Canada. But it is much smaller and weaker than Russia. There was no way Ukrainians could stop the Russian army from invading, or stop its missiles from hitting Ukrainian cities.
Many Ukrainian families are fleeing to safety in the West. Poland and other neighbouring countries are receiving many refugees from Ukraine. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has vowed to stay and fight for his country’s freedom. The Ukrainian army and even many ordinary citizens are trying to resist the Russian invaders. They are showing inspiring courage and patriotism.
How are other countries helping?
The United States and its European partners in NATO have even more powerful military forces than Russia. Some of these countries are sending weapons to help the Ukraine military. But it would be extremely dangerous for NATO to go to war against Russia in order to liberate Ukraine. Such a war between military giants would be disastrous. The last major war in Europe, from 1939 to 1945, became what is now called “World War 2”. Nobody wants “World War 3”.
The main way other countries are punishing Russia is with economic “sanctions”. These are penalties that will make it more difficult or more expensive for Russia to do business with the rest of the world. Like all modern countries, Russia needs to import and export things. To trade things with other countries, it needs money to flow easily between Russian banks and foreign banks. Many Russian companies and businessmen operate in other countries. Sanctions by the US and other countries will block many of these activities. They hope that these punishments will be so costly for Russia that Mr Putin will change his behaviour. Ukrainians and the rest of the world want him to settle his differences with Ukraine peacefully.
Like these Americans, people in many countries are showing their support for Ukraine.
WHAT IS ‘NEWS’?
You do not have to feel anxious that wars like this are suddenly going to erupt all over the world. Almost all countries, including in our part of the world, live in peace with their neighbours. Russia’s behaviour is such big news because it is so unusual, not because it is common.
“News” focuses on things that are unusual. Things that are ordinary — like countries having friendly relations with one another — do not make big news on television, newspapers, or the internet. Even a dangerous disease like dengue stops entering the “news” every day when it becomes very common. War is much rarer, which is why the Russian invasion fills the news right now.