HUMAN RIGHTS DISASTER - RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE

HUMAN RIGHTS

The invasion has likely resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides and caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II, with an estimated 8 million people being displaced within the country by late May as well as 7.8 million Ukrainians fleeing the country as of November 2022. Within five weeks of the invasion, Russia experienced its greatest emigration since the 1917 October Revolution. The invasion has also caused global food shortages. The invasion began on the morning of 24 February, when Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" aiming for the "demilitarisation"and "denazification" of Ukraine. In his address, Putin espoused irredentist views, challenged Ukraine's right to statehood, and falsely claimed Ukraine was governed by neo-Nazis who persecuted the ethnic Russian minority. Russia announced the illegal annexation of four partially occupied Ukrainian oblasts. In the course of the southern Counter offensive, Ukraine retook Kherson in November. The invasion has received widespread international condemnation. The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution condemning the invasion and demanding a full withdrawal of Russian forces. The International Court of Justice ordered Russia to suspend military operations and the Council of Europe expelled Russia. Many countries imposed sanctions on Russia, as well as on its ally Belarus, which have affected the economies of Russia and the world, and provided humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine, totaling over $80B from 40 countries as of August 2022. The International Criminal Court has opened an investigation into crimes against humanity in Ukraine since 2013, including war crimes in the 2022 invasion.

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