Today marks fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine

Four years ago, on February 24, 2022, at around 3:40, the first column of Russian tanks entered Ukraine’s Luhansk region, while residents of many Ukrainian cities awoke to the first enemy missile strikes.

According to Ukrinform, over four years of full-scale war, Ukraine has inflicted significant losses on Russia in manpower, weapons, and military equipment.

According to the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, total combat losses of Russian forces in Ukraine from February 24, 2022, to February 24, 2026, amount to approximately 1,261,420 personnel.

During this period, Ukraine’s Defense Forces destroyed 11,698 tanks, 24,086 armored combat vehicles, 37,560 artillery systems, 1,654 multiple-launch rocket systems, 1,305 air defense systems, 435 aircraft, 348 helicopters, 145,571 operational and tactical UAVs, 4,347 cruise missiles, 29 ships and boats, 2 submarines, 79,826 vehicles and fuel tankers, and 4,074 units of special equipment.

According to Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi, since the end of January this year, Defense Forces on the Oleksandrivka axis have regained control over 400 square kilometers of territory and eight settlements. Earlier, on February 20, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukrainian forces had liberated 300 square kilometers in southern Ukraine.

Syrskyi also noted that last year marked the first time Russia’s losses in Ukraine exceeded its recruitment levels. In 2025, Russia mobilized and conscripted 406,000 personnel, while total killed and wounded amounted to approximately 418,000 soldiers.

Overall, Syrskyi believes that despite battlefield challenges, Ukrainian forces managed in 2025 to thwart Russia’s large-scale offensive plans, prevent the capture of all of Donbas as well as territories in the Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, and Kherson regions, and establish buffer zones in the Kharkiv and Sumy regions. He again rejected claims by Russia’s military leadership about alleged “victorious” captures of Kupiansk and Pokrovsk.

At the same time, President Zelensky reported that confirmed Ukrainian military losses since the start of the full-scale invasion stand at 55,000 killed, with a large number of people still considered missing in action.

As of February 14, 2026, approximately 7,000 Ukrainian servicemembers are being held in Russian captivity.

As of February 2026, 71 prisoner exchanges have taken place (since February 24, 2024). The most recent large-scale exchange occurred on February 5, when 150 servicemembers and seven civilians were returned home.

According to the Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War, a total of 6,422 military personnel and civilians have been returned to Ukraine as of February. In addition, 16,747 bodies of fallen defenders have been repatriated (as of January 2026).

Meanwhile, the aggressor state continues to attack Ukraine’s civilian population and infrastructure. According to a report by the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine, as of February 2026, more than 15,000 civilians have been killed and over 41,000 injured since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Civilian casualties were recorded in 26 of Ukraine’s 27 administrative regions.

The total number of civilians killed and injured in 2025 was 31% higher than in 2024 (2,088 killed; 9,138 injured) and 70% higher than in 2023 (1,974 killed; 6,651 injured). In addition to regular shelling, Russia also violated international law by executing prisoners of war.

According to First Lady Olena Zelenska, 684 children have been killed in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale war, and more than 2,000 have been injured. Preliminary data indicate that over 19,000 Ukrainian children were illegally deported or forcibly transferred by Russia. At the same time, about 2,000 children have been successfully returned from Russia.

According to Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture, as of February 9, 2026, Russian aggression has destroyed or damaged 1,685 cultural heritage sites and 2,483 cultural infrastructure facilities.

Over nearly four years of war, Russia has also destroyed or damaged 4,358 educational institutions and 2,530 medical facilities, contradicting claims by Russian leader Vladimir Putin that Russia conducts the war in a so-called “surgical” manner.

According to the World Bank, over four years of full-scale invasion, Ukraine has suffered $195 billion in direct damage, while the total cost of reconstruction and recovery is estimated at nearly $588 billion. Damage in the energy sector has increased by about 21%, affecting power generation, transmission, and distribution facilities, as well as district heating systems. In the transport sector, needs have grown by approximately 24% due to intensified attacks on railways and ports in 2025. As of December 31, 2025, 14% of housing had been damaged or destroyed, affecting more than three million households.

On the occasion of the fourth anniversary of the full-scale invasion, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and President of the European Council António Costa will arrive in Kyiv. They will take part in an official memorial ceremony, visit an energy infrastructure facility damaged by Russian missile strikes, and hold talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky. The leaders will also attend a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing, to be held in Kyiv.

First photo: Separate Motorized Infantry Mariupol Brigade