Russian President Vladimir Putin's "special military operation" into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered "stiff resistance," according to U.S. officials.
The Russian military has since launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine's disputed Donbas region, capturing the strategic port city of Mariupol and securing a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.
A look at the two leaders at the center of the war in Ukraine and how they both rose to power, the difference in their leadership and what led to this moment in history.
Here's how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Jun 02, 2022, 1:34 PM EDT
Russia controls about 20% of Ukraine's territory, Zelenskyy says
Russia now controls over 46,300 square miles of Ukraine, which accounts for about 20% of Ukraine's territory, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
A service member of pro-Russian troops rides on top of an armored personnel carrier during Ukraine-Russia conflict in the town of Popasna in the Luhansk Region, Ukraine, June 2, 2022.
Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters
Since Russia's invasion began, Russian forces have gained control of over 16,602 square miles, or roughly 7% of Ukraine's territory -- an area that's comparable to the size of the Netherlands, Zelenskyy said Thursday in a speech to the Chamber of Deputies of Luxembourg. Combined with the territory from Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the war in the Donbas region, Russia's control of Ukraine now accounts for 20% of its territory, he said.
-ABC News'Christine Theodorou
Jun 02, 2022, 6:35 AM EDT
Ukrainian first lady sits down for exclusive interview with ABC News: 'Don't get used to our pain'
Since the start of Russia's invasion, the Ukrainian first lady has been in hiding with her two children. A difficult question her 9-year-old son keeps asking is when the war will end, Olena Zelenska said in an exclusive interview with ABC News.
"Unfortunately, I don't think any Ukrainian would be able to answer that question," Zelenska told "Good Morning America" co-anchor Robin Roberts in her first televised solo interview since the invasion began.
In discussing the state of the conflict nearly 100 days after Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a "special military operation" in Ukraine, Zelenska said that conceding territory to Russia won't stop the war.
"You just can't concede ... parts of your territory. It's like conceding a freedom," Zelenska, 44, said in the interview, airing on "Good Morning America" Thursday. "Even if we would consider territories, the aggressor would not stop at that. He would continue pressing, he would continue launching more and more steps forward, more and more attacks against our territory."
The interview with Zelenska will air Thursday on "Good Morning America" and across ABC News. "Good Morning America" airs at 7 a.m. on ABC.
First Lady of Ukraine discusses state of war with Robin Roberts
In an exclusive interview with ABC News, Olena Zelenska spoke about the ongoing conflict with Russia and where the Ukrainian people currently stand as a country.
Jun 02, 2022, 4:34 AM EDT
Russia takes most of key city in Donbas
Russian forces have taken control of most of Sieverodonetsk in eastern Ukraine, the U.K. Ministry of Defense said Thursday in an intelligence update.
"The main road into the Sieverodonetsk pocket likely remains under Ukrainian control but Russia continues to make steady local gains, enabled by a heavy concentration of artillery," the ministry said. "This has not been without cost, and Russian forces have sustained losses in the process."
An explosion erupts during heavy fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces in the eastern city of Severodonetsk, Luhansk Oblast, Ukraine, on May 30, 2022.
Aris Messinis/AFP via Getty Images
Sieverodonetsk, an industrial hub, is the largest city still held by Ukrainian troops in the contested Donbas region of Ukraine's east, which comprises the self-proclaimed republics in Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts.
"Crossing the Siverskyy Donets River -- which is a natural barrier to its axes of advance –- is vital for Russian forces as they secure Luhansk Oblast and prepare to switch focus to Donetsk Oblast," the ministry added. "Potential crossing sites include between Sieverodonetsk and the neighbouring town of Lysychansk; and near recently-captured Lyman. In both locations, the river line likely still remains controlled by Ukrainian forces, who have destroyed existing bridges."
Sievierodonetsk and Lysychansk are the last major cities in the Luhansk area still controlled by Ukraine.
"It is likely Russia will need at least a short tactical pause to re-set for opposed river crossings and subsequent attacks further into Donetsk Oblast, where Ukrainian armed forces have prepared defensive positions," the ministry added. "To do so risks losing some of the momentum they have built over the last week."
Jun 01, 2022, 9:27 PM EDT
Ukraine's first lady tells ABC News that giving up land is 'like conceding a freedom'
In an exclusive interview with ABC News, Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska spoke about the state of the ongoing conflict with Russia and where the Ukrainian people currently stand as a country.
In her first televised solo interview since the invasion began, Zelenska, 44, told "Good Morning America" co-anchor Robin Roberts that conceding territory to Russia won't stop the war.
Robin Roberts' speaks with Olena Zelenska, wife of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in Ukraine, June 1, 2022.
Press Service of the Office of the President of Ukraine
"You just can’t concede…parts of your territory. It’s like conceding a freedom," Zelenska said. "Even if we would consider territories, the aggressor would not stop at that. He would continue pressing, he would continue launching more and more steps forward, more and more attacks against our territory."
The interview with Zelenska will air Thursday, June 2, on "Good Morning America" and across ABC News. "GMA" airs at 7 a.m. on ABC.
