Moscow and Kyiv (CNN)Tensions in Ukraine are escalating. The country's eastern Donbas region -- where fighting between pro-Russian separatists and Ukrainian forces have simmered since 2015 -- experienced its worst shelling in years this week.
And diplomatic efforts to defuse tensions have, so far, failed to reach a conclusion.
As tensions continue to spike, here's some key moments to watch in the ongoing Ukraine crisis.
Ongoing wargames and nuclear drills
Over the past week, Russian President Vladimir Putin has focused international attention onto a series of military drills that have tested Russia's conventional military power. Russia's Ministry of Defense has released flashy footage of live-fire exercises in neighboring Belarus involving tanks, artillery and fighter aircraft, and the wargames have showcased Russia's air defenses and its navy.
On Saturday, Russia is set to test its strategic deterrent: its nuclear forces. The Kremlin announced Friday that Putin is "likely to be in the situation center" during military drills on Saturday, where ballistic and cruise missiles will be launched. Three decades after the end of the Cold War, both Russia and the United States have nuclear arsenals on "hair trigger" alert -- that is, nuclear warheads married up to their delivery systems and ready for launch at a moment's notice.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov noted that such training exercises are "quite regular," and would involve appropriate international notifications. That's true, up to a point: These readiness exercises are happening against the background of international tensions over Ukraine that could actualize into a major war.
Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
People are seen inside a bus in Donetsk, Ukraine, on Friday, February 18, after pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine's breakaway regions ordered the evacuation of civilians to Russia. The restive eastern part of the country has witnessed the worst shelling in years over the last two days. Both Ukraine and Russia have accused the other of heavy shelling of civilian areas. The Ukrainian government has denied that it is planning any offensive in the east, accusing the separatists of launching a "disinformation campaign."
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
The remains of a military vehicle are seen in a parking lot outside a government building following an explosion in Donetsk on February 18. Ukrainian and US officials said the vehicle explosion was a staged attack designed to stoke tensions in eastern Ukraine.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
A memorial service and candlelight vigil is held at the St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery in Kyiv, Ukraine, on February 18. They honored those who died in 2014 while protesting against the government of President Viktor Yanukovych, a pro-Russian leader who later fled the country.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
A kindergarten that officials say was damaged by shelling is seen in Stanytsia Luhanska, Ukraine, on Thursday, February 17. No lives were lost, but it was a stark reminder of the stakes for people living near the front lines that separate Ukrainian government forces from Russian-backed separatists.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
Children play on old Soviet tanks in front of the Motherland Monument in Kyiv on Wednesday, February 16.
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Ambassadors of European countries lay roses at the Wall of Remembrance in Kyiv on February 16. The wall contains the names and photographs of military members who have died since the conflict with Russian-backed separatists began in 2014.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
US troops walk on the tarmac at the Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport in southeastern Poland on February 16. US paratroopers landed in Poland as part of a deployment of several thousand sent to bolster NATO's eastern flank in response to tensions with Russia.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
A 200-meter-long Ukrainian flag is unfolded at the Olympic Stadium in Kyiv on February 16 to mark a "Day of Unity," an impromptu celebration declared by President Volodymyr Zelensky.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
Travelers wait in line to check in to their departing flights Tuesday, February 15, at the Boryspil International Airport outside Kyiv. US President Joe Biden has urged Americans in Ukraine to leave the country, warning that "things could go crazy quickly" in the region.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
A Ukrainian serviceman carries an anti-tank weapon during an exercise in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine on February 15.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
A location of Oschadbank, a state-owned bank, is seen in Kyiv on February 15. The websites of Oschadbank and PrivatBank, the country's two largest banks, were hit by cyberattacks that day, as were the websites of Ukraine's defense ministry and army, according to Ukrainian government agencies.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
A woman and child walk underneath a military monument in Senkivka, Ukraine, on Monday, February 14. It's on the outskirts of the Three Sisters border crossing between Ukraine, Russia and Belarus.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
F/A-18E and 18F Super Hornets are seen on the flight deck of the USS Harry S. Truman, an American aircraft carrier in the Adriatic Sea on February 14. The Truman was on its way to the Middle East in mid-December, but the Pentagon decided to keep it in Europe as tensions began to escalate.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
Ukrainian service members talk at a front-line position in eastern Ukraine on February 14.
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Members of Ukraine's National Guard look out a window as they ride a bus through the capital of Kyiv on February 14.
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Satellite images taken on Sunday, February 13, by Maxar Technologies reveal that dozens of helicopters have appeared at a previously vacant airbase in Russian-occupied Crimea.
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The Russian navy's diesel-electric Kilo-class submarine, Rostov-on-Don, moves through Turkey's Bosphorus Strait en route to the Black Sea on February 13.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
US soldiers and military vehicles are seen at a military airport in Mielec, Poland, on Saturday, February 12. The White House approved a plan for the nearly 2,000 US troops in Poland to help Americans who may try to evacuate Ukraine if Russia invades, according to two US officials familiar with the matter.
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Photos: Ukraine-Russia tensions
An anti-war demonstration takes place in Kyiv's Independence Square on February 12.
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Pro-Russian separatists observe the movement of Ukrainian troops from trenches in Ukraine's Donbas area on Friday, February 11.
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Ukrainian service members unpack Javelin anti-tank missiles that were delivered to Kyiv on Thursday, February 10, as part of a US military support package for Ukraine.
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Ukrainian service members walk on an armored fighting vehicle during a training exercise in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region on February 10.
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Tensions escalate in Donbas
Tensions in Ukraine reached their highest in years on Friday after pro-Russian separatist leaders in the breakaway republics of Ukraine's Donbas region called on civilians to evacuate -- and after an explosion wrecked a vehicle in the separatist-controlled city of Donetsk, creating more war jitters.
A kindergarten in Stanytsia Luhanska, in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region, was hit by a shell on Thursday.
Ukrainian officials deny any plans to retake Donbas by force, saying that they see this week's incidents as an effort by Russia to create a pretext to launch an invasion. But Russian state media have already sounded the alarm, showing images of civilians departing Donbas on buses heading to Russia's Rostov oblast, just across the border.
It is unclear how many civilians will be evacuated or if there will other incidents in Ukraine's east that Russia might seize on as a potential pretext for war.
A diplomatic balancing act
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking this week about his country's ambitions to join NATO.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is scheduled to attend the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, despite US President Joe Biden's administration plea to reconsider those plans to leave Ukraine amid concerns about a possible Russian invasion. It's possible that unexpected surprises could cut his visit short.
The US and NATO make moves
The US has already bolstered its military presence in eastern Europe; the US military announced a training mission in Hungary. How will the US and its allies react to the latest moves by Russia? Will we see more evacuations of diplomats remaining in Kyiv?
Olympics end
Russia has said its military drills are slated to end on Sunday, coinciding with the end of the Beijing Winter Olympics. Will the Olympics be remembered as a unifying international moment, or as a tragic preamble to war? That is anyone's guess.
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