Battle of Kyiv (2022)

Battle of Kyiv
Part of the Kyiv offensive of the Russian invasion of Ukraine
Above: Russian bombardment of the Kyiv TV Tower in Kyiv, 1 March 2022
Date 25 February – 2 April 2022 (1 month, 1 week and 1 day) Location Kyiv, Ukraine Result Ukrainian victory[1]
Belligerents
Russia	Ukraine
Commanders and leaders
Unknown	Oleksandr Syrskyi Vitali Klitschko
Units involved
Russian Armed Forces Russian Ground Forces 37th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade[2] Russian Airborne Forces 104th Guards Air Assault Regiment[3] Special Operations Forces[4] Russian Air Force[5] National Guard of Russia 141st Motorised National Guard Brigade[6] PMC Redut[7]	Armed Forces of Ukraine  Ukrainian Ground Forces 72nd Mechanized Brigade[8] 101st Brigade for the Protection of the General Staff[9] Sheikh Mansur Battalion[10] Dzhokhar Dudayev Battalion[11]  Ukrainian Air Force 40th Tactical Aviation Brigade[12] Territorial Defense Forces 112th Territorial Defense Brigade[13] International Legion[14] National Guard of Ukraine Pechersk Brigade[15] Azov Special Operations Detachment[16] Special Tasks Patrol Police[17] Irregular units[18][19]
Strength
15,000–30,000 soldiers[20][21] 700+ military vehicles[22]	Undisclosed regular soldiers 18,000+ irregular forces[23]
Casualties and losses
Unknown, presumed heavy[24][25][26] Four planes shot down[5][27]	162 soldiers killed, 748 wounded (Ukrainian claim)[28] 1 Sukhoi Su-27 fighter aircraft shot down[29]
89 civilians killed[30] ~2 million civilians evacuated[31]

The battle of Kyiv was part of the Kyiv offensive in the Russian invasion of Ukraine for control of Kyiv, the capital city of Ukraine, and surrounding districts including Hostomel Airport. The combatants were elements of the Russian Armed Forces and Ukrainian Armed Forces. The battle lasted from 25 February 2022 to 2 April 2022 and ended with the withdrawal of Russian forces.

Initially, Russian forces captured key areas to the north and west of Kyiv, leading to international prediction of the city's imminent fall. However, stiff Ukrainian resistance sapped Russian momentum. Poor Russian logistics and tactical decisions helped the defenders to thwart efforts at encirclement, and, after a month of protracted fighting, Ukrainian forces began counterattacking.

Following the successful Ukrainian counterattacks in late March, Russia began withdrawing its forces from the Kyiv area on 29 March. Four days later, the Ukrainian authorities declared that Kyiv and the surrounding Kyiv Oblast were again under Ukrainian control.