Following its independence, Ukraine declared itself a neutral state; it formed a limited military partnership with Russia and other CIS countries while also establishing a partnership with NATO in 1994. In 2013, after the government of President Viktor Yanukovych had decided to suspend the Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement and seek closer economic ties with Russia, a several-months-long wave of demonstrations and protests known as the Euromaidan began, which later escalated into the Revolution of Dignity that led to the overthrow of Yanukovych and the establishment of a new government. These events formed the background for the annexation of Crimea by Russia in March 2014 and the War in Donbas, a protracted conflict with Russian-backed separatists, from April 2014 until the Russian invasion in February 2022. Ukraine applied for the economic component of the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area with the European Union on 1 January 2016.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine