In the past year fighting between Ukraine and Russia has continued in both diplomatic and physical battles. The war remains pretty complex with many new ongoing developments. 

The conflict first started in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine. This created the first tensions of war which built up until February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine with over 300 thousand soldiers. In 2023 there were many developments in a war that seems to be forgotten by the rest of the world. 

One of the main developments of what has happened in the war has been the ongoing struggle in Eastern Ukraine, especially in the Donbas region. The region has seen heavy fighting between the two armies with it switching between who was in control many times in recent months and it has the most casualties in the war. Despite multiple ceasefires, there is still regular conflict in the area.

Russia has had many different focuses throughout the war that have been unsuccessful. Odesa was one of the main focuses of these efforts. While international attention has focused on the largely static front lines of the Russian invasion in southern and eastern Ukraine, Russia’s Black Sea Fleet has been pushed out of the northwestern Black Sea, with most Russian warships retreating in recent months to their home port of Sevastopol in Russian-occupied Crimea.

Ukraine’s progress on the Black Sea part of the war with Russia cannot be taken for granted. To win the Battle of the Black Sea, Ukraine needs to receive further support from the country’s partners. More importantly, it also represents a significant step toward victory in the Battle of the Black Sea, which would bring Ukraine closer to defeating Russia’s invasion.