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

Ukraine has been granted “Enhanced Partnership” status with the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) – a coalition involving the United Kingdom, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Norway.

Germany plans to increase financial aid to Ukraine by approximately EUR 3 billion next year. The funds will be spent on artillery, drones, armored vehicles, and the replacement of two Patriot air defense systems.

Minister of Defence of Norway Tore O. Sandvik has announced a decision to allocate $7 billion in 2026 for Ukraine’s defense needs.

Estonia plans to allocate EUR 3 million for the purchase and support of Starlink satellite communication systems for Ukraine.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has welcomed the European Union’s contribution to regional security and stressed the importance of the EU’s long-term support for Ukraine in strengthening security across the continent.

“The European Union’s support for Ukraine’s energy sector during the war remains uninterrupted. Since February 2022, we have already spent more than EUR 3 billion, and unfortunately, I share your concerns about this winter... Obviously, the challenges are serious. But we are trying to adapt and mobilize as many resources as possible,”  said European Union’s Ambassador to Ukraine Katarina Mathernova. The Ambassador also believes that  “Ukraine is becoming a model of how to carry out reforms while fighting for national survival, sovereignty, and freedom”.

The European Commission considers the expectations of the leaderships  of  Ukraine and Moldova regarding the completion of EU accession negotiations in 2028 to be achievable.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia Margus Tsahkna has called on China to stop its economic support for russia’s war against Ukraine and invited Beijing to join the efforts of Europe and the USA to establish peace.

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Norway will strengthen its 198-kilometer border with russia. Fences will be installed in a number of border areas. In addition to fences, modern sensors and surveillance cameras will be installed along the border to monitor it.

Moldova has taken the next step toward denouncing the agreement with russia on cultural centers, as a result of which the “russian house” in Chisinau will be closed. At its first meeting, the new government is expected to consider a draft agreement to denounce the agreement with russia on the functioning of cultural centers. Moldova signed this agreement with russia in 1998.

“All the aggressive statements coming from russia only strengthen the Italian people’s desire to defend those who are suffering from illegal and unjustified aggression that violates international law,” said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs  of Italy regarding the “vulgar words” of the rf’s ministry of foreign affairs  spokesperson maria zakharova about the collapse of the medieval Conti Tower in the center of Rome.

russia’s seaborne oil shipments have fallen sharply as the latest US sanctions have forced key buyers to suspend purchases. At this, some of the oil exported is not delivered to refineries but remains on tankers, which are used as floating storage facilities. In the week leading up to November 2, after the US imposed blocking sanctions against “Rosneft” and “Lukoil”, 26 tankers took on board 21.11 million barrels in russian ports, but a week earlier, 34 vessels loaded 26.41 million barrels. On a daily average basis, exports amounted to 3.02 million barrels (3.77 million). The four-week figure decreased  by 190,000 barrels per day to 3.58 million – the largest drop since January 2024.

russia exported 20.6 million tons of grain in July–October 2025, which is by a quarter less than in the same period in 2024. In particular, wheat exports fell by 28 %. The number of countries to which russian wheat was shipped decreased from 50 to 30.

“russia’s Railways” forecasts a 2.6 % decline in freight traffic in November and a 4.8 % decline in December.

In russia, the risk of mass bankruptcies of small businesses because of  tax  increases is 50  %. Small businesses operate with minimal profits and cannot withstand a sharp increase in the tax burden. The mass closure of small businesses will lead to rising unemployment, reduced competition, and higher prices for goods and services.

russian banks have begun to massively block transfers between the clients’ own accounts.

In 2026, 96 % of russian companies providing mobile communications, home Internet, pay TV, and telephony services plan to raise their tariffs. Almost half (48 %) of telecom operators intend to increase the prices of their services by 5-10 %, and 16 % – by more than 10 %.

russian retail chains suffering from declining sales are forced to sell off their assets. From January to October 2025, the number of transactions in the retail market jumped by almost 86 % year-on-year.

In russia, housing rental prices rose by 15 % over the year.

The share of worn-out medical equipment in state hospitals and clinics in the rf  amounted to 24.8 % at the end of 2024.

Social networks, messengers, and dating sites in the rf are required to keep users’ correspondence for the FSB for three years.

Since February 2022, at least 44 residents of russia and the temporarily occupied Crimea have been persecuted for performing or listening to Ukrainian songs. Those persecuted were charged with “discrediting” the army, displaying extremist symbols, or petty hooliganism.

“A civil war may break out in russia due to the accumulation of social, economic, and political conflicts,” warned head of the russian president’s office  for monitoring and analyzing social processes Aleksandr Kharichev.  According to Kharichev, civil war is one of the five challenges facing russia. Besides, the country is threatened by the loss of political, territorial, and cultural sovereignty, depopulation, loss of public trust in the government, and the collapse of the political system, as well as the “dehumanization” and transformation of russians into “consumers”.

russia continues to tighten control over russian higher education. In the next academic year, due to new rules, more than 200 russian universities will lose the right to accept applicants for paid places in a number of fields.

Olga Yaroslavskaya, the children’s rights ombudsman in moscow, has proposed taking away a month of summer vacations from schoolchildren. She has stressed that russia already has the longest holidays in the world. Yaroslavskaya has proposed dedicating June to the study of “creative and practical” disciplines, such as labour, physical education and extracurricular activities. Given the latest trends in the russian education system, this means patriotic education and weaving camouflage nets.

russia’s  eSports federation will develop video games dedicated to so-called national russian sports. These will include traditional games such as lapta and gorodki.

Next year’s budget of the rb will be in deficit, with a noticeable increase in expenditure. In particular, the budget provides for increased ( by 6.7 billion rubles [+1.36 billion rubles]) funding for the internal affairs agencies, the kgb, and other security services.

As of November 4, at least 182 political prisoners in the rb are at particular risk behind bars. Among them, 66 people are in poor health, 37 are in difficult family circumstances (single parents and parents of large families, families in which both parents are imprisoned), 25 are elderly people over 60 years of age, 9 have mental disorders, and 8 have disabilities. This number also includes political prisoners who are discriminated against on various grounds, including those who are held incommunicado and those who remain in prison even though their sentences have expired.

According to data from the end of September, at least 9,044 people in the rb have faced politically motivated criminal prosecution since 2020 (8,905 a month earlier). At least 7,724 people have received politically motivated sentences since 2020, including in absentia (7,565). These figures continue to grow every month.

In the five years – since the presidential election on August 9, 2020, and until October 31, 2025 – at least 1,977 non-profit organizations – associations, trade unions, foundations, non-governmental institutions, and associations – have been liquidated in belarus.