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

The United Kingdom plans to provide Ukraine with an additional 10 billion pounds (EUR 11.9 billion) in financial aid: 7 billion pounds in economic support over the next three years, and another 3 billion pounds in export support, primarily for the supply of necessary weapons.

The government of the Netherlands is allocating EUR 1.2 billion in non-military aid to Ukraine over the next three years. According to Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Sierd Sierdsma, the focus is on assistance in the areas of energy and water supply, as well as on business support. Specifically, this year, EUR 40 million will be fast-tracked to the Ukraine Energy Support Fund for the urgent restoration and repair of energy infrastructure, and EUR 55 million will be allocated for energy supplies to be delivered to Kyiv. The Netherlands will also contribute EUR 10 million to the “Industrial Ramstein” initiative for Ukraine.

The government of Norway has announced the allocation of 500 million kroner (nearly 54 million US dollars) for energy support to Ukraine ahead of winter.

The World Bank has transferred $404.5 million to Ukraine’s general state budget as part of the “Transforming Health Care through Reform and Investment in Efficiency” (THRIVE) project. In total, Ukraine has already received $701.7 million under this program.

The European Union will keep its energy sanctions against russia in place until the latter ends the war against Ukraine. “We know all too well the hidden cost of dependence on russia for fossil fuel imports… We have learnt our lesson – regardless of whether there is a war or not,” said Chief Spokesperson for the European Commission Paula Pinho.

According to EC Spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, the EU is gradually phasing out fossil fuel imports, as provided for by the REPowerEU legislation, which is not tied to sanctions or other political events. “Regardless of what happens, we are gradually phasing out russian pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas from the European market. The last deliveries are expected to end by the end of next year,” Itkonen said.

Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Türkiye Alparslan Bayraktar has pointed out that his country could become an important alternative to russian gas supplies for European nations, and proposals to that effect are already coming in from Europe. According to the Minister, investments in energy infrastructure are helping to transform Türkiye into an energy hub.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland Elina Valtonen has stated that Finland does not wish to act as a mediator in the war because it supports Ukraine. “Finland is not seeking a role as a mediator in the war, because we stand with Ukraine now and will continue to do so in the future,” Valtonen said. She has also emphasized that Finland is not seeking opportunities to improve relations with russia, but rather wants to advance efforts to achieve peace.

An independent commission of the UN General Assembly investigating war crimes in Ukraine has accused russia of crimes against humanity. International diplomats and human rights activists described the methods used to recruit foreigners into the russian army and its affiliated structures as human trafficking in a public report.

The economic slowdown, falling profits, and high interest rates on loans have dealt a blow to hundreds of thousands of russian companies and sole proprietorships burdened by debt. As of August 1, 2026, 28% of all borrowers from russian banks were having trouble repaying their loans. Approximately 200,000 legal entities and sole proprietors are unable to repay their loans and credits on time. Over the years of full-scale war against Ukraine, more than 140,000 entrepreneurs and companies have joined the group of “problem” debtors, and compared to 2019 figures, their number has quadrupled (+150,000).

Sales of agricultural machinery in russia may decline by 5–15% for the year. September proved particularly dismal: shipments of combine harvesters fell by 65.3%, and those of tractors – by 30%.

In January–September 2026, number of business flight bookings within russia fell by 10.5% compared to the same period last year, and of international bookings – by 6%. Businesses are cutting back on business travel to reduce costs.

The net loss of PJSC “sovcomflot” for January–September 2026 increased by 17% compared to the same period last year and amounted to 787.8 million rubles.

In russia, during the petrol crisis, prices for turkey, fish, buckwheat, fast food, and a number of other goods rose to record highs. Granulated sugar saw the sharpest price increase – by nearly 15%.

The “ozon” marketplace incurred losses of 30.1 billion rubles due to damage to 11 logistics centers.

According to CEO of russia’s largest bookshop chain “chitay-gorod – bukvoed” aleksandr brichkin, the company has withdrawn from sale and destroyed books worth 100 million rubles because they did not comply with new laws.

The ministry of digital technologies of the rf is preparing new restrictions for the russian internet: the agency will route all traffic from foreign domains through website-blocking equipment and limit the volume of traffic available to users.

“roskomnadzor” has added Apple and Microsoft to the register of information distributors. In fact, this is a step toward blocking their services in russia.

Seven years after the start of the “rubbish reform”, 59% of russians surveyed by “vtsiom” reported that they sorted their waste. However, it is unclear exactly how they do this, since 61% of respondents pointed out that there were no facilities for sorting waste near their homes, within “walking distance”.

russian private clinics have found a way to raise the cost of doctor visits. Medical networks are introducing their own categories of specialists, which affects the prices of appointments and the terms of service under voluntary health insurance policies. Insurers warn that the spread of this practice could lead to further increases in policy prices.

About 35% of state-funded medical residency spots at medical universities in the rf, allocated as part of a targeted quota, remain unfilled.

omsk – one of three cities in siberia with a population of over one million – is becoming a new epicenter of “forced mobilization”, following penza region, where authorities were the first to begin abducting men off the streets and sending them to the front lines in Ukraine. People are taken directly from the streets, tortured and forced to sign contracts.

russia has sharply increased its purchases of arm and leg prostheses, as well as artificial joints, from Germany amid the full-scale war against Ukraine, which has been ongoing for five years now. From January through June 2026, imports totaled EUR 79 million (about 7.4 billion rubles), which is nearly by a third more than a year earlier. Compared to the first half of 2021, shipments of limb prostheses increased 5.4-fold, and those of joint replacements – 6.1-fold.

In irkutsk region – the second-largest economy in the siberian federal okrug – mass layoffs of public sector employees have begun amid an acute budget deficit. According to the updated draft regional budget for 2026, which was submitted to the legislative assembly last week, the “hole” in the regional treasury has grown to 38.7 billion rubles, representing 11.8% of total expenditures (before the amendments, this figure stood at 8.3%).

The European Union must step up diplomatic efforts aimed at securing the release of belarusian political prisoners. At the same time, there are no grounds for easing sanctions against minsk. This was stated by Marcin Przydacz, the Head of the Department of International Policy at the Office of the President of Poland.

Ireland’s Minister of State for European Affairs and Defense Thomas Byrne has expressed solidarity with the belarusian people in their struggle for democracy and human rights.

From 2019 to 2024, the share of spending on family policy in belarus fell by one-third. At the same time, the birth rate and the number of marriages in the country have been declining rapidly. The fertility rate (the average number of children per woman) fell from 1.39 to 1.08, a decrease of 22%. At the same time, belarusians are getting married less frequently (this figure has fallen by 24%) and, as before, are frequently getting divorced. A key negative factor is the reduction in the share of spending on family policy in the national budget: from 9% to 6.3%, or by 29%.