Russia’s Putin losing ground as Zelenskyy points to shifting momentum

Explained simply

Russia and Ukraine have been at war since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, in what has become the largest land conflict in Europe since the Second World War. Vladimir Putin is Russia's long-serving president, while Volodymyr Zelenskyy is Ukraine's president and has become a prominent international voice appealing for military and financial support from Western allies. Progress on the battlefield has shifted repeatedly over the years, with both sides claiming advantages at different points.

Assessments of who is "winning" are often contested and shaped by political messaging as much as by verified facts on the ground, since neither government has an incentive to downplay its own position. References to changing wartime technology typically relate to the growing role of drones and other equipment altering how the conflict is being fought. The war matters well beyond the two countries involved, as it has affected global energy and food prices, tested Western unity, and shaped relations between Russia and other major powers.