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

The European Parliament in its report recommends “opening (for Ukraine) negotiating clusters to advance the country’s EU membership application as soon as possible, subject to further implementation of EU rules and the completion of reforms already initiated”.

The European Commission is working on proposals for the EU’s central budget, which envisages a special off-budget fund for Ukraine at the level of EUR 88 billion.

The Government of Luxembourg has officially increased its contribution to the Ukraine Energy Support Fund to EUR 12 million.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Radosław Sikorski believes that it is better to pay for weapons for Ukraine using the rf’s frozen assets.

“...We, Europeans, know that russia cannot be trusted. The only way to stop it is through force,” said Prime Minister of Estonia Kristen Michal.

EU Diplomacy Chief Kaja Kallas has said that russia is intensifying the use of chemical weapons in the war against Ukraine, trying to force the country to capitulate.

“We continue to see no progress on the russian side: russia continues to target civilians with increasingly brutal attacks, demonstrating how little moscow is committed to building the peace we all seek, despite the Trump administration’s willingness to engage in dialogue, which putin has decided not to embrace,” said Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni.

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NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has said that secondary sanctions could hit China, Brazil and India if russia does not take peace talks seriously to end the war against Ukraine. “My encouragement to these three countries is... you might want to take a look into this because this might hit you very hard. Please make a phone call to vladimir putin and tell him he needs to get serious about peace talks,” emphasized the NATO Secretary General.

The EU Council has decided to impose additional sanctions on nine individuals and six organizations responsible for russia’s destabilizing actions abroad. In particular, the “blacklist” includes: The state enterprise “russian television and radio broadcasting network” (RTRB) and its director general, as well as the director of the department for coordination of the development of communication infrastructure in occupied territories of Ukraine; the 841st separate center for electronic warfare of the rf, together with two senior personnel officials; the BRICS journalists association (BJA); the Foundation for Fighting Injustice (R-FBI); and the center for geopolitical expertise (CGE).

putin should take President Donald Trump’s call to end the war in Ukraine within 50 days seriously, otherwise he risks repeating the fate of Iran, said US Senator Lindsey Graham. “If putin and others are wondering what will happen on the 51st day, I would advise them to call the Ayatollah. If I were a country that buys cheap russian oil and supports putin’s war machine, I would take President Trump at his word,” he said.

Between January and June, developers sold 10.4 million square meters of housing in new buildings in russia, or by 26 % less than a year earlier.

Over the past year, the cost of apartment renovation in russia has increased by 70-80 %. While in 2024 a thorough overhaul for a 44 sq. m. apartment was estimated at an average of 0.8-1 million rubles, by July 2025 similar services will start at 1.5 million rubles. The main reasons for the growth are the increase in the cost of materials and the shortage of qualified personnel, which companies are forced to retain by raising salaries. Among construction materials, dry mixes (+10.7 %), plumbing (+10 %), hardware and fasteners (+11.5 %), and consumables (+9.8%) showed the highest growth over the past six months.

russian poultry farms have begun to get rid of laying hens amid the decreasing egg prices and increasing losses. Producers are forced to reduce the number of chickens due to a serious decline in profitability. The price decline began before Easter but accelerated rapidly in late May and early June.

Members of the state duma have passed a law that simplifies the procedure for recognizing various associations as “extremist”. Now, a guilty verdict that has come into force under Article 282.1 of the Criminal Code (“organization of an extremist community”) against at least one of its members will be enough to put an organization on the relevant register. Previously, to recognize an association as “extremist” a separate court decision was required to ban it or liquidate it as a legal entity.

russia may introduce fines of up to 50 thousand rubles for transferring a mobile number to another person. The relevant amendments to the draft law on fines for certain offenses have been approved by the state duma’s committee.

The state duma has proposed to fine russians for using VPNs and reading “a priori extremist materials” on the Internet. By introducing penalties for consumption, russian authorities are following the lead of belarus, where this has been practiced for years.

A year after passing a law that increased court fees for citizens and businesses to 50 times, the state duma has canceled fees for participants in the war against Ukraine.

russia will limit remittances for migrants. According to the idea of the members of the state duma, foreigners who came to work should not send abroad funds exceeding the official salary.

In russia, the price of education has risen by an average of 11 %.

The number of meningococcal infections in russia has increased by 260 % within five months.

minister of healthcare of the rf murashko has said that according to the results of medical examinations since 2024, almost 13 % of russian women and 2.1 % of men have been diagnosed with diseases of the reproductive system. And the average age of a mother giving birth has increased by three years since 1995.

The River Volga in Astrakhan is polluted with oil products. Earlier, oil contamination of the river over an area of 465,000 meters was also detected in Trusovskii district of Astrakhan.

European Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy Marta Kos has announced a new aid package to support belarusian independent media and civil society.