What happened in Ukraine on 25 May 2022?

What was the war's security picture on 25 May 2022? Russian missiles struck two Ukrainian cities that day, adding to a run of legal, diplomatic and economic developments in the preceding days.

Strikes on Zaporizhzhia and Pokrovsk

In the south, a Russian cruise missile strike destroyed a shopping centre and several homes in Zaporizhzhia. One person was killed and three were injured. Local officials said at least 62 homes were damaged.

In the east, Russian missiles hit Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast, injuring several people. The attack came during the Donbas offensive.

The days before

The strikes followed a series of notable developments. On 23 May 2022, a court in what was the first trial for war crimes during the invasion sentenced Vadim Shishimarin, a 21-year-old Russian soldier, to life in prison for fatally shooting a 62-year-old civilian.

The same day, the Russian diplomat Boris Bondarev said he had resigned in protest at the invasion of Ukraine.

On 24 May 2022, Hungary declared a state of emergency over the war in Ukraine and over problems in the Hungarian economy caused in part by the conflict.

Also on 24 May 2022, the United States Department of the Treasury announced it would not renew the sanctions exemption that had allowed Russia to service its sovereign debt to American investors. Letting the exemption expire increased the likelihood that Russia would default on that debt in the summer.

Why the date matters

Taken together, the reports from 23 to 25 May 2022 show the war pressing on several fronts at once: missile damage to civilian areas in the south and east, the first war-crimes verdict, a diplomat's public resignation, and mounting economic strain through both sanctions policy and Hungary's emergency declaration.