6 months of war in Ukraine | The situation “more worrying than ever”

August 24 marked six months of war in Ukraine. A sad observation as the Ukrainians marked the 31st^e anniversary of their independence (August 31, 1991). A few things to remember.

Andre Duchesne
The Press

Human losses underestimated

As of August 22, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) counted 5,587 civilians killed and 7,890 injured since February 24, 2022. The organization also indicates that these figures are underestimated. “OHCHR estimates that the actual numbers are considerably higher. The receipt of information from some places where intense hostilities have taken place has been delayed and many reports are waiting to be corroborated,” it says. In Mariupol alone, an estimated 20,000 civilians were killed. A vagueness also remains on the military losses. Many agree to quantify them at more than 10,000, or even much more.

Mariupol

On Tuesday, FSC Mariupol football club resumed its activities in the Ukrainian second division. But, war obliges, the players train in a stadium in Demydiv, north of Kyiv. If there is an example of a city-martyrdom to illustrate the consequences of the invasion, it is Mariupol, a port city on the Sea of ​​Azov. Beyond the mediatized headquarters of the Azovstal steelworks, the city has been 90% destroyed, proclaims its mayor, Vadim Boïtchenko. The population, estimated at 432,000 in 2021, has shrunk by tens of thousands. Occupied by the Russians, the city nevertheless claims its identity. “We are alive”, summarizes Oleksandre Yaroshenko, president of FSC Mariupol.

when the world is hungry

The war had the effect of reminding us of the importance of agriculture. In addition to seeing their crops affected, Ukrainian farmers experienced the blockade (now lifted) of their grain production. Hit by economic sanctions, Russia has been hampered in its sale of essential fertilizers to producers in many countries, including Canada. Prices have gone up. Poor countries are threatened with famine. “Projections for 2022 indicate that up to 181 million people in 41 countries could face a food crisis. However, most of these analyzes do not take into account the impacts of the war in Ukraine”, indicates the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

6,657,918

As of August 17, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) registered 6,657,918 refugees from Ukraine across Europe. This represents 15% of the population recorded in 2021. According to the site worldpopulationview.com, the population of Ukraine has fallen by 8.8% since one year to settle at 39.7 million inhabitants. This is by far the largest fall of the 209 states listed. Ukraine is also said to have had 7 million internally displaced people. Some have now returned home.

20%

Together with Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, Ukraine’s area is 603,700 square kilometers. However, since the occupation of the provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk, Ukraine has lost 20% of its territory to Russia. As a percentage, it is as if we were taking Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador out of Canada.

No less worrying

If the war in Ukraine makes less headlines than in the first weeks, the situation is no less worrying. This is the impression of Yann Breault, professor of international studies at the Royal Military College of Saint-Jean. “Nobody imagined that Ukraine would resist an aggression of this magnitude or that it would enjoy such support from the West,” he said. However, that the conflict has recently spread to Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014, does not bode well, he says. “We crossed a red line by attacking Crimea, which the Russians consider their territory. There is a process of escalation still going on and more worrying than it has ever been. »

3 billions

On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden announced new military aid worth $2.98 billion, bringing the total to $13.6 billion. This allows Ukraine to resist and even to retaliate. But for how long ? “The Ukrainian army is not equipped, even with American equipment, to stop the beating fire of the Russian artillery, believes Mr. Brault. I am quite pessimistic about the chances of the Ukrainians to liberate the territory. The West would like to defend the international order and respect for the intangibility of borders. But we don’t have the determination to go all the way in an open confrontation with Russia, which remains a major nuclear power. Will the motivation to liberate Ukraine continue? Not sure. The Russians are counting on this exhaustion of Western aid. »

Sources: The New York TimesFrance Info, Agence France-Presse, Associated Press, United Nations Refugee Agency, worldpopulationview.com, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, FAO