Seventeen days into the invasion, Russian forces controlled 47,600 square miles of Ukrainian territory. They had made relatively swift progress in the south, taking the cities of Kherson, Melitopol, and Berdyansk within the first week.
The battles taking place north of Kyiv told a very different story, however. Having advanced from Belarus, Russian forces were halted on the outskirts of the capital.
On the first day, the Russians launched an airborne assault on Hostomel airport. They had hoped to use the airport to create a land-bridge, enabling a build-up of forces to attack nearby Kyiv.
But the attack was repelled, as was another on the second day. Further Russian missile strikes destroyed an Antonov AN-225, the world’s largest plane, which was stationed at Hostomel. The destruction can be seen below:
The type of audacious assault seen at the airport, with lightly armoured airborne troops rushing the defenders, was a hallmark of Russia’s tactics in the early stage of the war.
The Ukrainians had considerable success in holding off these attacks – and the slower armoured columns which followed – by using anti-tank weapons, nimble reconnaissance teams, and targeted artillery fire.
Russian equipment losses began to mount, something that has continued throughout the first 100 days of war.
Problems were also mounting for Russian troops occupying the south. Their progress had slowed and on March 11 footage showed Russian forces dragging Ivan Fedorov, the mayor of Melitopol, from the town square, sparking protests.
It was a far cry from the welcome the Kremlin seems to have expected in Ukraine – little resistance followed by the Kyiv government’s capitulation in a matter of days.
As the war entered its third week, Russia’s initial momentum had almost completely stalled. The battle for Kyiv – a battle fought in the suburbs and satellite towns around the capital – had been won by Ukraine.
It would force a change in Russia’s focus in the north.
