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

“We will disburse the first tranche of EUR 45 billion for 2026, still this quarter,” President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has confirmed that Ukraine will receive EUR 6 billion from the EU for drones in the second quarter of 2026.

King Charles III of the United Kingdom, in an address to the US Congress, emphasized the need for “resolute support” for Ukraine amid global instability. In his view, this is what will help achieve “a just and lasting peace”.

“If Ukraine does not hold out, which will not happen, the consequences could be disastrous for our democratic systems and the future of the next generations,” said  President of the Senate of Spain Pedro Rollán Ojeda, calling for the return of over 20,000 Ukrainian children abducted by russia.

“Ukraine is a country that, out of necessity, has developed an unbelievable capacity for innovation and speed. They do not develop technologies under laboratory conditions, but rather – quite literally – on the battlefield,” said Minister of Defence of the FRG Boris Pistorius, noting that his country benefits from its military support for Ukraine.

On April 30, at its plenary session in Strasbourg, the European Parliament plans to adopt a resolution calling for the immediate establishment of a Special Tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine.

The European Commission has launched a new platform for testing military technologies in real combat scenarios. “The platform, with a budget of EUR 35 million, is designed to speed up the deployment of high-priority innovations directly on the battlefield in Ukraine,” reads the statement.

Latvia has decided to transfer additional CVR(T)-type combat armored vehicles to Ukraine.

The Japanese company Terra Drone Corporation, through its subsidiary Terra Inspectioneering, has made strategic investments in the Ukrainian defense company WinnyLab LLC, which develops and manufactures interceptor drones.

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“Sanctions have a devastating impact on the russian economy. With rising inflation and rapid increases in interest rates, the consequences of russia’s war are paid from ordinary people’s pockets,” said President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen. In her view, russians feel that they are “living behind an iron curtain again, a digital iron curtain”.

The USA has barred two russian diplomats from participating in G20 and UN events.

Following the adoption of the 20th package of EU sanctions, Greek shipowners, who had been responsible for a significant portion of russian petroleum product shipments, began scaling back their operations in the rf’s market. This led to a decrease in available tonnage in the Baltic Sea basin: by April 26, the number of tankers for transporting light petroleum products in the waters of Baltic ports had fallen to eight or nine – the lowest level since early February.

Minister of Defence of Norway Tore O. Sandvik asserts that NATO holds a military advantage over russia, particularly in terms of air power, which will have a decisive impact on any military confrontation with russia. “putin is incapable of winning in Ukraine. He stands no chance against NATO,” the Norwegian Minister is convinced.

Italy’s Ministry of Culture is organizing an audit of funding for the russian pavilion. The audit and actual searches at the Palazzo Ca’ Giustiniani in Venice, where the Biennale Foundation is located, are scheduled to begin at the behest of Minister of Culture Alessandro Giuli. The focus is on financial documents related to the russian, Iranian, and Israeli pavilions.

Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina have signed an agreement to build a gas pipeline that will connect the Bosnian gas network to Croatian infrastructure. The pipeline will allow Bosnia and Herzegovina to import gas without relying on russian routes.

russians’ savings have become almost the sole source of funding for the economy. This was stated by governor of central bank elvira nabiullina.

“russian citizens should take their savings out from under their mattresses and deposit them in the banking system or financial markets so that the money can work for the economy,” said minister of finance of the rf anton siluanov.

The national association of healthcare managers of the rf has sent a letter to prime minister mikhail mishustin, complaining about the lack of funding in the public healthcare system and proposing to “close” the deficit by redirecting pensioners’ money to healthcare.

Demand for steel products in the russian construction sector in the first quarter was by 17% lower than last year.

The net profit of russian passenger airlines from sales in 2025 nearly halved, to 31 billion rubles, while cash flow turned negative, amounting to 16 billion rubles.

Major clothing and electronics retailers are preparing to reduce retail space and open mini-shops with a limited product range due to russians shifting to a frugal lifestyle. The shift of retailers toward mini-formats first of all reflects consumer behavior and a decline in russians’ purchasing power.

russia’s five largest developers have begun missing residential construction deadlines more frequently due to financial difficulties. By the end of April, the share of projects delivered past their original deadlines had risen to 15.1% (2.43 million square meters). A year earlier, the figure was nearly five times lower – just 3.2% (503,800 sq. m).

“norilsk nickel”, russia’s largest mining and metallurgical holding company, began 2026 with a sharp drop in production of all key industrial metals. In the first quarter, production of nickel plummeted by 28% compared to October–December, of copper – by 12%, of palladium – by 14%, and of platinum – by 26%. On an annual basis, “norilsk nickel” produced by 26%, 18%, and 10% less platinum, palladium, and copper, respectively.

The st. petersburg stock exchange reduced its net profit by more than 40% in 2025.

One of russia’s largest food retailers, “x5”, reduced its net profit to 13.3 billion rubles in the first quarter. Profitability by this metric fell by 60 basis points.

Shares of one of russia’s largest developers, the “samolet” group, fell by 6% in a single day and approximately by 18% over the month.

The rf’s ministry of digital development is introducing a fee for all international data traffic for russian mobile internet users. The measures are aimed at fighting VPN services.

In most russian regions, anti-Rh immunoglobulin – vital for many pregnant women – has once again become unavailable.

In russia’s southern regions, the retail sector is struggling due to staff shortages, at this the quality of customer service has plummeted to a critical low. Residents of rostov region and the krasnodar territory have already resigned themselves to hours-long lines, indifference, and outright rudeness from staff.

In tatarstan, 71% of private homes being built under mortgage agreements have missed construction deadlines.

In st. petersburg, the volume of warehouse real estate commissioned in 2026 will decrease by 17%.

Residents of belgorod region have stopped receiving compensation for cars damaged during shelling because the funds have run out. Also, in early April, regional authorities postponed for the third time the payment of compensation for housing rentals for refugees from the border region.

US Special Representative for belarus John Cole has expressed hope that next month the rb will continue releasing political prisoners.

Agricultural exports from russia to belarus increased by 20% in the first two months of 2026 compared to the same period last year.

The numbers of  cattle in the rb decreased by 3.7% over the course of the year.