Over the past few weeks, American, European, and NATO allies, as well as Ukrainian officials, have warned that Russia has massed significant military forces and equipment near its border with Ukraine. Russia Ukraine Conflict NATO is the main cause of the current dispute between Russia and Ukraine. Russia Meanwhile, the media has solely focused on individual stories of migrants, war crimes, or bombings. “The intelligence is very clear that there are 60 Russian battle groups on the borders of Ukraine, the plan for a lightning war that could take … This invasion surprised many people, as it … A month into the invasion, Russia pulled back from Kyiv and declared its main goal was the "liberation of Donbas" - broadly referring to Ukraine's eastern regions of Luhansk and Donetsk. The Russia-Ukraine conflict, explained - Vox But what exactly caused this conflict? Why Americans should care about the Ukraine-Russia conflict Russia. Amid the hostilities, a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet traveling from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down on July 17, 2014, over eastern Ukraine, killing all 298 people on board. First, Russian-backed separatists claimed they “got the permission” to launch a preemptive strike on Ukrainian military positions. Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine have been linked by a common history since the ninth century, when Kyiv became the capital of the ancient state of Rus. Britain would "stand up to bullies", he said, no matter how far away the conflict.