[Ukrainian soldier with a flag. Credit to Pixabay]

On the Friday of May 10, 2024, Russian troops launched an attack near Kharkiv, the second largest city of Ukraine, prompting a mass exodus of civilians despite their fears for their safety.

The Russia-Ukraine war officially began back in February 24, 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine, escalating the initial Russo-Ukrainian war that broke out in 2014.

Ever since then, a multitude of events happened to increase tensions between the two countries, forcing numerous people to relocate and move out of the countries.

According to Mercy Hands Europe, Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion aimed to “remove the corrupt government and denazify the country.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin has continuously challenged Ukraine’s sovereignty, claiming that the nation was persecuting the Russian minority within Ukraine.

The conflict has seen many developments and is still ongoing.

According to the U.S. News and World Report, shortly after the invasion, Ukrainian forces caused Russian troops to retreat, causing them to attack Ukraine’s infrastructure.

This left many civilians without adequate water and power supplies.

All of these events lead up to current day, where Russia has launched a ground attack near Kharkiv.

Al Jazeera reports that since May 10, nearly 10,000 people have been forced to flee their homes.

The village of Staritsya in the Kharkiv region has also come under attack, without bombings and airstrikes causing significant destruction.

According to the BBC, President Volodymyr Zylensky has claimed that 3,000 glide bombs have been launched by Russia by March alone.

Glide bombs are very cheap, yet highly destructive as they are able to glide to increasingly far distances, causing a significant amount of mass destruction.

However, experts from the New York Times claim that by fighting back, Ukraine’s already small army may decrease even further.

According to Statista, Russia currently has approximately 1,320,000 active soldiers compared to Ukraine’s 900,000.

The estimated available manpower starkly contrasts, with Russia boasting 69.4 million and Ukraine 22.8 million.

This disparity has heightened concerns among Ukrainian citizens about their nation’s future.

Ukrainians are currently more vulnerable than ever due to the delay of the supplies from the United States, which are only now reaching the front lines.

This delay has left many without basic necessities and in urgent need of help.

Despite the assistance provided by the United States and other countries, it is not sufficient for Ukraine to gather enough strength to fight back or at least level the playing field.

This makes Ukraine’s next actions more critical than ever, as their next response to the attack depends heavily on their strategy as the smaller army.