Ukraine and the World – Against russia’s Aggression. Sanctions in Action

Ukraine has received a new shipment of missiles for its Patriot air defense systems from its partners.

Portugal will become the 15th country to join the Special Tribunal on the Crime of Aggression Against Ukraine.

European Commission Deputy Chief Spokesperson Arianna Podestà has stated that Ukraine will be able to submit a request to the EU for the disbursement of over EUR 2 billion under the Ukraine Facility mechanism once several draft laws adopted by the Verkhovna Rada –necessary to unlock these funds – come into effect.

“As a statistical example: while in January (2026) 21 russian air defense systems were destroyed – and we’re talking about everything from the tactical level to strategic early-warning radars –in February 25 systems were destroyed, and in March – 41 different systems. The current trend indicates that April will continue at the same pace,” said Director of the Defence Readiness Department at the Estonian Ministry of Defence Gert Kaju, assessing the achievements of the Ukrainian military.

On April 15 in Berlin (Germany), the first of a series of Ukrainian unity centers will begin its work; last year Kyiv announced the creation of these centers to maintain communication between Ukrainians abroad and their homeland and to facilitate their return home.

The Italian group UniCredit has decided against selling UniCredit Bank in russia and instead plans to liquidate it.

The central bank of the rf has reported a sharp drop in payments processed through its payment system. In the first quarter, incoming payments were on average by 5% lower than the average in the fourth quarter, with the decline accelerating month by month: in January they were lower by 2.4%, in February – by 4.5%, and in March – by 8.1%. Over the year, incoming flows decreased by 11.4% (first quarter compared to January–March 2025). Taking into account the inflation accumulated during this period, the real decline reaches 17%.

By the end of the first quarter of 2026, the retail business confidence index had fallen to its lowest since 2006. This indicator is based on businesses’ assessments of their inventory levels, the current economic situation, and forecasts for the future. In January–March, the index stood at minus eight points (by four points lower than the figure for the first quarter of last year), indicating that the number of entrepreneurs who view the situation as unfavorable exceeds the number of optimists. The mood of the businesses is declining amid a sharp drop in retail sales in russia—retailers are beginning to revise their development plans: cutting staff, reducing warehouse space, and scaling back investments in expansion.

The pension and social insurance fund (formerly the pension fund) of the rf, which provides payments to 40 million russian pensioners, ended the year 2025 with a record deficit. The fund’s expenditures exceeded its revenues by 1.239 trillion rubles. Compared to 2024 (369 billion rubles), the fund’s “hole” increased 3.4-fold.

Constant internet outages have forced russians and businesses to return to cash. Demand for cash is growing, and according to the central bank, the amount of cash in circulation increased by 0.3 trillion rubles in March, following a rise of 0.2 trillion rubles in February.

Many imported goods have become significantly more expensive in russia. In particular, since late February, prices for electronics and electrical equipment have risen by about 9%, for auto parts – by over 9%, and for high-tech components – including lithium-ion batteries and semiconductors – by 10%. Prices have also risen for fuels and lubricants, as well as raw materials for production of fertilizers – ammonia and sulfur. The reason for the price hikes is Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which up to 60% of imported goods were delivered from the UAE to russia.

russia’s market for new heavy-duty trucks is expected to stagnate in 2026. Sales will remain at last year’s level – 45,000 to 60,000 units. A downward trend cannot be ruled out. There are no prerequisites for a strong recovery in demand following last year’s sharp decline (sales of new heavy trucks in 2025 fell 2.2 times, to 46,900 units).

russian tour operators and industry associations are reporting a sharp decline in foreign tourists’ interest in traveling to russia. In the first quarter of 2026, tourist traffic fell by 30–40%.

Revenue at the former (expropriated) IKEA factory in leningrad region fell by 24% in 2025 – to 1.65 billion rubles. Since the change of ownership, the factory has yet to turn a profit. “luzales-tikhvin” LLC’s net loss last year increased by 60% compared to 2024. The cumulative loss since 2023 reached 1.01 billion.

In the first quarter of 2026, the number of “krasnoye & beloye” shops in russia declined for the first time in the chain’s history. In the first quarter of 2025, the chain was growing, but by the end of 2025, its expansion had slowed down significantly – only 955 new locations opened, compared to a record 3,705 in 2024. The number of shops is declining due to a decrease in purchasing power and anti-alcohol campaigns in the rf.

According to its 2025 financial results, the fesco transport group (which is part of the “rosatom” state corporation) reported a net loss of 3.17 billion rubles. The group had planned to settle its liabilities in 2025, but after being added to the European Union’s sanctions list, it postponed these plans until 2026.

russia’s football premier league recorded a net loss of 7.4 million rubles for 2025. By comparison, a net profit of 47.14 million rubles was recorded the previous year. Administrative expenses jumped by nearly 60%.

Domestic spending on research and development in russia accounts for 0.97% of GDP, which is lower than the levels in Malaysia (1.01% of GDP), Egypt (1.03% of GDP), and Lithuania (1.05% of GDP). russia is lagging behind Israel – which ranks first in the world in R&D funding (6.35% of GDP) – more than six times, behind South Korea (4.96% of GDP) – five times, behind Taiwan (3.97% of GDP) – four times, and 3–3.5 times behind Sweden, the USA, Japan, Belgium, and Austria.

russia has effectively dropped out of the ranks of global leaders in the space industry. This was stated by the scientific director of the space research institute of the russian academy of sciences academician lev zeleny. According to him, no manned flights into deep space, particularly to the Moon, are planned in russia for the next 10 years.

russia has postponed the launch of its “orel” spacecraft due to sanctions and problems with electronics. The mission was originally scheduled for 2028, but since 2022, microchips and processors have become the main obstacle. There is no access to the necessary foreign-made chips. Now even a test flight in 2029 is in doubt.

Only a quarter of respondents in russia agree with the statement that the rf is a European country and that russians “aspire to the same goals as Europeans – material well-being, freedom, and democracy”. This is evidenced by the results of a survey conducted by the VTsIOM analytical center. Two-thirds of russians surveyed are convinced that russia is “a country with a different system of values than European countries, and their ideas do not suit us”, compared to 51% in 2006.

Active foci of animal rabies remain in at least 16 regions of russia. The most difficult situation is currently in tyumen region. Cases of rabies have also been detected in the altai territory, as well as in novosibirsk, orenburg, tver, omsk, tambov, kemerovo, nizhny novgorod, voronezh, and ryazan regions, as well as in bashkortostan. Quarantine zones are also in effect in moscow and yaroslavl regions.

In the first quarter of 2026, the st. petersburg city treasury collected less tax revenue than a year ago. The sharpest declines were seen in corporate income tax and revenue from special tax regimes for small and medium-sized businesses (down by 20% and by 5%, respectively).

According to the results of 2025, the st. petersburg metro (underground railway – Transl.) incurred a net loss of 3.53 billion rubles. For comparison: a year earlier, it had earned 4.03 billion rubles in net profit.

The kgb of belarus has designated the largest chat group of relatives of prisoners of “pretrial detention center No. 1 kolyadichi”, which had about 1,800 people, as an “extremist group”. In addition to this group, 21 other chat groups with similar themes have been added to the list.

chairperson of the council of the republic of the national assembly of the rb natalia kochanova has proposed introducing liability for “absolutely groundless” complaints published on social media.