Maps of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Ukraine’s Donbas region
Russia’s offensive in eastern Ukraine, known collectively as Donbas, has long been a flash point for conflict between the two countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly invoked the idea of Donbas’s distinctive regional identity as a basis to “defend” its Russian-speaking people inside Ukraine.
Parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions were already ruled by separatists loyal to Moscow before Russia launched its latest invasion in February. Since then, U.S. officials say Russian forces have not made much progress militarily in Donbas; one official described the progress as “anemic.” Read more.
RUSSIA
Belgorod
Valuyki
50 MILES
Kharkiv
Russian-held
areas
Starobilsk
LUHANSK
Krasnohrad
Izyum
Severodonetsk
UKRAINE
Slovyansk
Luhansk
Kramatorsk
Separatist-
Horlivka
Dnipro
controlled
Shakhty
Donetsk
—Dnieper R.
area
DONETSK
Zaporizhzhia
Rostov-on-Don
Taganrog
Mariupol
Russian-held
areas
RUSSIA
Yeysk
Berdyansk
Melitopol
Control areas as of May 8
Sources: Institute for the Study of War, AEI’s Critical Threats Project
THE WASHINGTON POST
Russian-held areas as of May 8
RUSSIA
Belgorod
Valuyki
Kharkiv
UKRAINE
LUHANSK
Izyum
Severodonetsk
50 MILES
Slovyansk
Luhansk
Kramatorsk
Separatist-
Dnipro
controlled
area
—Dnieper R.
Donetsk
DONETSK
Zaporizhzhia
Rostov-
on-Don
Mariupol
Melitopol
RUSSIA
Sources: Institute for the Study of War, AEI’s Critical Threats Project
THE WASHINGTON POST
Russian-held areas as of May 8
RUSSIA
Belgorod
Valuyki
Kharkiv
UKRAINE
LUHANSK
Izyum
Severodonetsk
Slovyansk
Luhansk
Dnipro
Donetsk
—Dnieper
DONETSK
Separatist-
controlled
area
Zaporizhzhia
Mariupol
Melitopol
RUSSIA
50 MILES
Sources: Institute for the Study of War
THE WASHINGTON POST
Ukrainians rush to cross to neighboring countries
Fighting throughout the country has driven nearly 6 million people from Ukraine into neighboring countries, the U.N. refugee agency said. According to border police authorities, the majority of Ukrainians are fleeing to Poland.
Men ages 18 to 60 are barred from leaving the country after President Volodymyr Zelensky’s call to take up arms and defend the country against the Russian invaders.
After weeks of attempted evacuations, more than 125,000 Ukrainian civilians have been able to use humanitarian corridors to leave bombarded cities, according to a video address by Zelensky.
Russia had earlier proposed routes leading to Russia or Belarus, which were rejected by Ukraine. Ukrainian officials have accused Russian troops of repeatedly bombarding convoys of food and medicine trying to reach the besieged city of Mariupol.
Humanitarian corridors proposed by Russia
Corridors to other regions of Ukraine
Corridors to Russia or Belarus
Russian-held areas
BELARUS
RUSSIA
Gomel
Sumy
Belgorod
Kyiv
Kharkiv
Poltava
UKRAINE
Separatist-
controlled
area
Zaporizhzhia
Mariupol
Kherson
Rostov-
on-Don
Odessa
Crimea
Annexed by Russia
in 2014
100 MILES
Black Sea
Control areas as of March 7.
Routes are approximate.
Sources: Institute for the Study of War; Post reporting, Russian Ministry of Defense
Humanitarian corridors proposed by Russia
Corridors to Russia or Belarus
Corridors to other regions of Ukraine
Russian-held areas
RUSSIA
BELARUS
Gomel
Sumy
Belgorod
Kyiv
Kharkiv
Poltava
UKRAINE
Separatist-
controlled
area
Zaporizhzhia
Mariupol
Rostov-
on-Don
ROMANIA
Kherson
Odessa
100 MILES
Crimea
Annexed by Russia
in 2014
Black
Sea
Control areas as of March 7. Routes are approximate.
Sources: Institute for the Study of War; Post reporting, Russian Ministry of Defense
Dylan Moriarty, Artur Galocha, Joe Fox, Harry Stevens, Hannah Dormido, Laris Karklis, Lauren Tierney, Tim Meko, Simon Ducroquet, Júlia Ledur, Adrián Blanco and N. Kirkpatrick contributed to this report.