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

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has confirmed that Ukraine will receive $400 million in aid, as planned, to defend against russia’s aggression.

The European Council has announced that eight countries have joined the EU’s latest sanctions against belarus and russia. Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, and Ukraine will align their policies with EU regulations.

Montenegro, Romania and San Marino have informed the Council of Europe of their readiness to join the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Establishing the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression committed by russia against Ukraine.

Minister of Defence of the FRG Boris Pistorius sees signs of a turning point in Ukraine’s difficult struggle to defend itself against russia. “I believe that the Ukrainians truly have the upper hand. russia is going through a period of weakness – economically, domestically, and on the battlefield,” Pistorius said.

President of Poland Karol Nawrocki has stated that russia’s war against Ukraine is a direct challenge to the entire Euro-Atlantic security order.

russia no longer has the capacity for large-scale escalation, nor does it have the resources for a confrontation with NATO, but only the realization by russian dictator putin that the goals of the war against Ukraine have failed will force him into real negotiations, said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Radosław Sikorski.

President of Romania Nicușor Dan has pointed out that the kremlin’s statements about the possibility of a ceasefire should not be trusted. According to him, russia continues the war despite its own claims of seeking peace.

At a meeting of European Union Ministers of Sports in Brussels, representatives of Poland opposed allowing athletes from russia and belarus to compete, arguing that this “could hinder the hosting of international sporting events in Europe and create problems for security and public order”. In particular, the Polish side stated that there is “no place for the national symbols of aggressor countries” at international tournaments. Warsaw was supported by Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia, as well as Finland, France, Romania, and Sweden.

German banks have carried out another round of account freezes, depriving russians of access to their money.

Switzerland intends to limit the length of stay for russian diplomats.

The government of the rf has responded to putin’s question about why macroeconomic indicators are worse than the government’s own forecasts. In response, ministers simply lowered their official forecasts.

According to the updated macroeconomic forecast from the ministry of economic development, oil production in the rf in 2026 will continue to decline for the fourth consecutive year and fall to its lowest level in the past 17 years.

Stock trading volume on the russian market fell in April to its lowest since January 2024. Stocks in the oil and gas and chemical sectors demonstrated the sharpest decline in revenue in April.

Retailers sharply reduced the opening of new shops in moscow after russians had switched to a frugal spending mode. In January–March of this year, 80 new retail outlets opened in 52 key shopping centers in the capital – a 55.8% year-on-year decline.

Attendance at russian cinemas during the May holidays fell by 35%.

russians withdrew a record 210 billion rubles from banks during the May holidays due to internet outages.

“Biblio-Globus”’s revenue fell by a record 22% in 2025. Among the reasons for this decline are the rising production costs for books, the reduced selection of titles, and the decline in the population’s purchasing power.

By the end of 2029, russians’ total spending on utilities will increase by 35.7%.

russians’ happiness levels have fallen to their lowest point since 2011 amid the ongoing war and economic problems.

The cost of funerals has risen across russian regions. The average cost of a funeral in the regions of the central federal district was 69,948 rubles. However, in some regions, a funeral can cost nearly twice as much. The most expensive funeral services are provided in lipetsk region (115,700 rubles), moscow region (110,300 rubles), and moscow (102,400 rubles). There was a significant price increase in this sector in tula region – by nearly 27% (to 82,900 rubles) – and in belgorod region – by 22.8% (to 54,500 rubles).

One in six regional officials will be subject to layoffs in samara region. This region has become at least the sixth in russia whose authorities have announced cuts to the civil service.

In russia, they have begun to ignore the fact that the constitution guarantees residents free access to the banks of rivers and lakes. Consequently, an entrance fee will soon be charged to enter the “blue lakes” nature reserve in kazan.

Tax revenues from st. petersburg residents for January–April increased by 16% compared to last year, while those from businesses decreased by 6%.

In russia, books about Cheburashka, three little pigs, and Khottabych have begun to be labeled due to a law banning drug propaganda.