Russia–Ukraine border in the context of "Ukraine"

On 24 February 2022, as part of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Russian military crossed the Russia–Ukraine and Belarus–Ukraine borders into northern Ukraine, entering the regions of Kyiv, Chernihiv, Sumy, and Zhytomyr. The Russian operations in northern Ukraine were initially launched as an attempt to capture Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine and the seat of the Ukrainian government.

Russian forces initially captured several towns and cities, but logistical and supply failures, stiff Ukrainian resistance, and poor morale caused their advance to stall. With heavy losses and the inability to make further progress, Russia withdrew its forces from Kyiv, Zhytomyr, Chernihiv and Sumy Oblasts in late March and early April 2022, and Ukrainian forces retook control.

Belgorod (Russian: Белгород, pronounced [ˈbʲelɡərət]) is a city that serves as the administrative center of Belgorod Oblast, Russia, located on the Seversky Donets River, approximately 40 kilometers (25 mi) north of the border with Ukraine. It has a population of 339,978 (2021 census).

It was founded in 1596 as a defensive fort on the southern border of Russia. Contested by various Russian and Ukrainian factions during World War I and the Russian Civil War, the city served as the temporary Soviet Ukrainian capital at the turn of 1918 and 1919.

In March and April 2021, prior to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Russian Armed Forces began massing thousands of personnel and military equipment near Russia's border with Ukraine and in Crimea, representing the largest mobilisation since the illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014. This precipitated an international crisis due to concerns over a potential invasion. Satellite imagery showed movements of armour, missiles, and heavy weaponry towards the border. The troops were partially withdrawn by June 2021, though the infrastructure was left in place. A second build-up began in October 2021, this time with more soldiers and with deployments on new fronts; by December over 100,000 Russian troops were massed around Ukraine on three sides, including Belarus from the north and Crimea from the south. Despite the Russian military build-ups, Russian officials from November 2021 to 20 February 2022 repeatedly denied that Russia had plans to invade Ukraine.

The crisis was related to the War in Donbas, itself part of the Russo-Ukrainian War, ongoing since February 2014. Intercepted phone conversations of Sergey Glazyev, a top advisor to Russian President Vladimir Putin, disclosed the specifics of the project Novorossiya to take over not just Crimea, but also the Donbas, Kharkiv, Odesa, and Zaporizhzhia regions of Ukraine, which Russia apparently aimed to annex following Crimea. The plan involved fomenting widespread unrest using pro-Russian agents on the ground, and then orchestrating uprisings that would announce rigged referendums about joining Russia, similar to the one that took place in Crimea on 16 March 2014. In December 2021, Russia advanced two draft treaties that contained requests for what it referred to as "security guarantees", including a legally binding promise that Ukraine would not join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and a reduction in NATO troops and materiel stationed in Eastern Europe, threatening unspecified military response if those demands were not met in full. NATO rejected these requests, and the United States warned Russia of "swift and severe" economic sanctions should it further invade Ukraine. The crisis was described by many commentators as one of the most intense in Europe since the Cold War.

Izvaryne (Ukrainian: Ізварине; Russian: Изварино, romanized: Izvarino) is a rural settlement located on the E40 highway in Sorokyne urban hromada, Dovzhansk Raion (district) of Luhansk Oblast in Ukraine. It is also an important road and railway crossing point on the Ukrainian side of the Russia–Ukraine border. There are facilities at the crossing for motorcars, lorries, and trains.

Izvaryne lies across from the Russian town of Donetsk in Rostov Oblast, not to be confused with the Ukrainian city of Donetsk. Population: 1,560 (2022 estimate), 1,692 (2013 est.).