Life changed in an instant in Ukraine on 24 February 2022, when Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

Here, Ukrainians share the last photo they took on their mobile phones before their country changed forever.

Image source, Angelina Chaban

Image source, Borys Shelahurov

Image source, Anna

Image source, Ihor Bezrukyi

You can read the full story here.

Image source, EPA-EFE

The bridge linking southern Russia to the Crimean peninsula has reopened to road traffic, Russia's deputy prime minister has said.

Sections of the Crimean Bridge, also known as the Kerch Bridge, were severely damaged following a deadly blast in October, which killed three people. Russia accused Ukraine of being responsible for the blast. Ukraine has not said whether it was to blame.

Writing on Telegram, external, Deputy PM Marat Khusnullin said the reopening of the bridge was "a big gift" for Russia on Defender of the Fatherland day - a national holiday in Russia celebrating the armed forces.

He said the work to restore the bridge - which would normally take over a year - was completed in just four-and-a-half months with workers working around the clock to finish it. He added that other parts of the bridge were still being restored.

In December, the Kremlin posted a video of Russian President Vladimir Putin driving a Mercedes car across the bridge while being told about the reconstruction plans. The leader had personally inaugurated the bridge on its completion in 2018. It is viewed as a symbol of Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine in 2014.

One thing to look out for in the coming hours is over in New York as the United Nations General Assembly votes on a resolution calling for peace as soon as possible.

The measure is not legally binding, but it holds political weight.

Speaking to the BBC earlier, Romania's Minister of Foreign Affairs Bogdan Aurescu said the adoption of the resolution would make it clear to Moscow how little support there was for its war against Ukraine.

And UK ambassador to the UN Barbara Woodward said that the vote "would keep pressure on Russia to end the war".

But some countries - including Belarus, China and Iran - say the text raises tension and advances a Cold War mentality.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence has listed what it considers to be its major victories against Russia in the last 12 months.

The deputy defence minister Hanna Malyar set out the achievements during a military briefing which include:

• The defence of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy and Kharkiv between February and April last year
• Massive resistance by civilians to Russian forces
• The destruction of the Moskva, Russia's flagship Black Sea missile cruiser
• Succesful defence of Snake or Zmiinyi Island as it's known in Ukraine
• Expulsion of Russian troops from the Kherson region in September - October

You can view the post on Telegram here., external

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

Let's turn briefly to Belarus - a country which while it has not become involved in the war directly, did allow Russian troops to use its territory to launch the invasion last February.

At last weekend authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko warned Belarus would join the war if it was attacked.

Now, Lukashenko's main opponent in the last presidential election, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, has called on Belarusians to hold rallies on the first anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion.

Tikhanovskaya, who claimed victory in 2020 before fleeing Belarus, wrote: "Tomorrow will mark one year since the start of the war which should not have lasted even a single day."

Tikhanovskaya says Belarusians get arrested for wearing Ukraine's national colours and listening to Ukrainian music.

She added that while "Lukashenko's regime is taking part in the war", thus making Belarus a "co-aggressor", Belarusians do not support this war.

Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Kyiv

I’ve just been speaking with Ukraine’s Health Minister Viktor Liashko.

In an interview at his heavily-fortified ministry, Liashko called for continued support in arming Ukraine, so that it could protect hospitals and other healthcare facilities.

The minister said 106 medical workers had been killed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion on 24 February 2022, and 174 healthcare buildings completely destroyed.

“Under the Geneva Convention, medical facilities are protected by international law, and if a country doesn’t obey those rules, it is a terrorist state and should be recognised as one,” he said.

Referring to the medics killed, Liashko said there could be “no compensation for this loss of human life”.

“This is someone’s father, or husband, or wife. This is a tragedy to a family that was caused by Russia, and for what?” he said.

Liashko added that “millions of Ukrainians” had suffered psychologically as a result of the war.

“On this anniversary, the only message is to ask the world to continue supporting Ukraine, because we are fighting not only for our democracy, but for democracy across the whole world.”

Russia denies its troops intentionally target civilians or have committed atrocities in occupied areas.

In a broadcast that will have come as a surprise to many residents of Crimea, two radio stations of the occupied region played out a speech asserting that Ukraine will restore its control over areas captured by Russia.

Rather than this being a change of heart by Russia, it appears to have been a successful hack of the airwaves to ensure an address by the head of Ukrainian intelligence was broadcast.

Instead of scheduled programming, the Sputnik v Krymu (Sputnik in Crimea) and Vera stations in several regions of Crimea broadcast a statement by Kyrylo Budanov, as well as the Ukrainian national anthem.

A video with the recording of the speech being played out live on the radio has also been published online, in which a man who introduces himself as Budanov can also be heard saying that all "traitors" will be killed.

"To all patriots, the time to act has come! Sit tight. We're headed your way," he adds.

All wars end at the negotiating table - Ukrainian PMpublished at 13:51 Greenwich Mean Time 23 February 2023

13:51 GMT 23 February 2023

James Waterhouse
Ukraine correspondent in Kyiv

Ukraine says the likelihood of the conflict spilling into World War Three would be “impossible” if it wins.

After being asked about whether he was concerned about China’s strengthening of ties with Russia, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said a global conflict would only be likely if Moscow was to be victorious, as it would send the message that unprovoked aggression can go unpunished.

Officials at the Hague say Kyiv has now convicted 26 low ranking Russian soldiers for war crimes.

Shmyhal says he’s calling on allies to create a system which could prosecute the Russian leaders who gave the orders, instead of the those who carried out the acts.

He adds Ukraine would continue to fight until Russia was prepared to negotiate its complete withdrawal from Ukrainian territory.

“Our partners assure us they will support us for as long as needed,” he said.

“We understand all wars finish at the negotiating table.”

Image source, Reuters

President Volodymyr Zelensky has taken to Telegram, external to reflect on the last 12 months since Russia invaded Ukraine.

Accompanied by various images showing the impact of the war, he says memories like these "leave deep scars in your heart and soul".

"They remind us of the path we have gone [on] from February to February," he says, commending Ukraine for not breaking.

"We have overcome many ordeals and we will prevail," Zelensky's message reads, adding:

"We will hold to account all those who brought this evil, this war to our land. All the terror, all the killings, all the torture, all the looting.

In recent days, a long-standing feud between Russia's military bosses and the head of Russian mercenary group Wagner escalated dramatically when he claimed officials had been denying ammunition supplies to his group.

Wagner calls itself a "private military company" and has thousands of troops involved in heavy fighting in Ukraine.

It began operations in 2014 in Crimea and has since operated elsewhere in Ukraine, in Syria and across Africa. It has been accused of brutality and war crimes.

Yevgeny Prigozhin recently blamed army chiefs for the death of his troops, which he said was down to a shortage of ammunition. But it looks like that may have been resolved.

Writing this morning on Telegram, Prigozhin's press service said: "So far it's [an arrangement] on paper, but we have been told that the main documents have already been signed."

Image source, .

Amid warnings of air raids ahead of the first anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the mass-mobilisation of troops for spring offensives, a grinding war on the ground in the east and south of Ukraine continues.

But with little significant movement in terms of territory lost or gained (for either side) in recent months, what's the current situation on the front line?

First and foremost, many military experts and Western intelligence officials say they believe Russia's spring offensive has already begun, some weeks ago. In the eastern region of Donestk, for instance, Russia continues to launch waves of assaults to recapture towns lost to Ukraine last year, heavily defended by Ukrainian troops in the area.

Russia has made some marginal gains around the town of Bakhmut - which has become symbolically important to Russia after months of brutal attacks spearheaded by the Wagner mercenary group - at great cost to both sides in terms of troops, ammunition and military hardware.

Image source, .

Vuhledar has also been identified as a key target for Russia's military operations, with the town being heavily shelled - indicating a fresh assault in the area, despite similar failed efforts late last year and earlier this month.

Reports suggest the offensive in nearby Luhansk have also begun to ramp up, although little by way of concrete gains have been declared and some Russian sources claim this is not the case.

In the south, near the city of Kherson, the only regional capital taken by Russia in the initial phase of the war which was then recaptured by Ukraine last year, Russia continues to conduct primarily defensive operations.

We're hearing about some Ukrainian communities in the Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions which are experiencing limited power supply.

This is due to damaged power distribution facilities, energy grid operator Ukrenerho says on Telegram.

Scheduled outages remain in place in the Odesa region where repair works continue on the highly damaged energy infrastructure, Ukrenerho writes.

Across the country, Ukrainians have been warned all week about possible missile strikes in the lead up to the one-year anniversary since Russia invaded on Friday 24 February.

In our next post, we'll bring you the latest on what's happening on the battlefield.

Zhanna Bezpiatchuk & Rhodri Davies
Reporting from Kyiv Oblast

A bit more to bring you from our access to Ukraine's Air Defence Forces.

As the one-year anniversary approaches, Ryabyj (who we introduced in our first post) reflects on the start of the invasion, which was surprising even for a military man like himself.

“I didn't expect it,” Ryabyi says, adding he and fellow soldiers were still studying how to use certain machines when the invasion began.

"We didn't have time to even finish our studies when we were woken up at 04:00 in the morning and told that the war had started," he recalls. “We loaded the car with rockets within half an hour and left in order of battle to protect the city of Kyiv.”

Ukraine’s defences have on the whole been successful, at times shooting down barrages of missiles.

The air defences mean that in many of Ukraine’s towns and cities, like in central Kyiv and western Lviv, people can live relatively relaxed lives, enjoying walking around parks and sitting in cafes, without an overwhelming threat that missiles will land nearby.

Zhanna Bezpiatchuk & Rhodri Davies
Reporting from Kyiv Oblast

In our last post we told you a bit about the soldiers tasked with manning Ukraine's air defences. Now let's look at the type of equipment they're using.

To name a few:

• Soviet long-range S-300 systems
• Those received from Western countries, including the Iris-T, SAMP-T and NASAMS anti-aircraft and air-defence systems
• And soon, the soldiers will be expecting Patriot missile systems from the US

Image source, Reuters

These defences prevent Russia from flying over aircraft to bomb towns and cities, which could be shot down.

Instead they have to fire guided missiles and use weaponised drones that fly out of their own sight towards their Ukrainian targets - a much harder way to achieve their goals.

Army personnel, like the ones we speak to, are keeping watch for these missiles and drones. The group of three men we meet wait during hours-long shifts in a forested area outside of Kyiv.

On the signal that air fire is incoming, they have minutes to move to an open area of land, set up, and shoot down the incoming fire they see. Last month the Ukrainian Air Defence Forces shot down a Russian cruise missile in the Kyiv region.

Zhanna Bezpiatchuk & Rhodri Davies
Reporting from Kyiv Oblast

We've had a rare opportunity to speak to forces manning Ukraine’s air defences, just outside the capital Kyiv.

One of the men at the air defence, Ryabyj, says: “We are prepared for anything. If there will be shelling, we will try to effectively shoot down all the targets they launch at us, so that they can’t go anywhere.”

Ukraine has air defence positions protecting the whole country.

These men are using a stinger - a portable system firing a surface-to-air missile - mounted on a military Hummer vehicle.

It can shoot down targets flying at a relatively low altitude.

Alice Cuddy
Reporting from Kyiv

Amid concerns over possible Russian attacks to mark the anniversary of its invasion, the capital Kyiv was briefly under an air raid alert today.

The alert lasted from 11:11 local time to 12:07.

Ukraine’s air force later said it had shot down a Russian reconnaissance drone over the Kyiv region.

Air Force spokesman Yurii Ihnat also warned that there is a threat of missile strikes in Kharkiv, in eastern Ukraine.

Some colleagues of mine have been speaking to the people responsible for protecting Ukraine's air space. Stay tuned for some posts from them.

Almost a year on from Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a special edition of Radio 4's programme From Our Own Correspondent looks at how the conflict has played out.

It features thoughts from several of our colleagues, including senior international correspondent Orla Guerin, North America editor Sarah Smith and Vitaly Shevchenko from Ukrainecast.

In Orla's piece, she speaks about the human cost of the war. Here's a snippet of what she says:

The BBC's Steve Rosenberg also appears, recalling how he didn't see the invasion coming.

Listen to the programme in full here.

In London, protesters have poured yellow and blue paint on the main road outside the Russian embassy in Kensington.

Photos show the paint being brushed across the width of the road to create a giant Ukrainian flag.

The Met Police say four people - three males and one female - have been arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and obstructing the highway.

All four have been taken to a west London police station where they remain at this time, the Met say.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Rob Cameron
Prague correspondent

More now on the military assistance given to Ukraine, with the Czech government for the first time confirming what military support it has supplied.

Prime minister Petr Fiala says his country had provided:

• 89 tanks
• 226 infantry fighting vehicles
• 38 howitzers
• 33 multi-launch rocket systems
• six anti-aircraft systems
• four helicopters
• 1.5m rounds of ammunition
• 60,000 rockets

Image source, Reuters

He says around a quarter was provided from army reserves and the rest from Czech arms contractors.

Mr Fiala adds his country was the first western ally to supply Ukraine with tanks, helicopters, infantry fighting vehicles, multi-launch rocket systems or howitzers - some of that support has been crowdfunded.

The Czech NGO Gift For Putin, in conjunction with the Ukrainian embassy, invites people to donate towards specific items of military hardware.

In October, they raised enough money for an upgraded T-72 main battle tank, and subsequently 15 truck-mounted air defence systems.

Anna Holligan
Hague correspondent

Eurojust has created a new database to catalogue legal files logging allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Ukraine.

It forms part of the EU agency's joint investigation team (JIT) - made up of countries including Lithuania, Poland and Estonia - looking at potential crimes committed during the war.

The new database will help to collate and share evidence, with Eurojust's president Ladislav Hamran calling it a "real game changer".

Meanwhile vice-president Margarita Šniutyte-Daugeliene said a new international centre for the prosecution of the crime of aggression would provide "a new dimension".

The centre, announced earlier this month, will be used by the JIT and will focus on analysis and the preservation of evidence linked to potential crimes of aggression. It'll also seek to determine who gave the order to invade Ukraine.

As of this morning, Ukraine has recorded more than 71,000 alleged war crimes, committed since Russia launched its invasion almost a year ago.