Page 6 - The Inprovoked War: Russia's Invasion of Ukraine

INTRODUCTION

An Unprovoked

Attack

The young Ukrainian couple originally planned to marry in
May 2022. But on February 24, Yaryna Arieva and Sviato-
slav Fursin said their wedding vows to the sound of air raid
sirens. Arieva and Fursin had agreed that if the Russians at-
tacked their country, they would marry as soon as possible.
They tied the knot the day Russia began its fi erce assault
on Ukraine. The next day, Arieva and Fursin joined Ukraine’s
Territorial Defense Forces (TDF), volunteer citizen soldiers
who are helping defend their country.
Russia’s invasion was not unexpected. For months,
President Vladimir Putin had been amassing his military
might along the Russia-Ukraine border. By February, some
190,000 troops stood ready to invade at their leader’s com-
mand. For Putin, giving that command would be the fi rst
step in his long-sought goal of bringing Ukraine back under
Russian infl uence.

Justifying the Invasion
Russia and Ukraine share a long-running, often tempestu-
ous relationship. For hundreds of years, they have fought
over territory that is home to both Ukrainians and Russians.
By 1922 they were united under the Communist banner
of the Soviet Union, a forced alliance of Russia and other
eastern European countries. The Soviet Union collapsed
in 1991, freeing Ukraine to declare its independence that

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