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

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway Espen Barth Eide has announced the allocation of $400 million in aid to Ukraine, which will be directed to the energy sector and functioning of the Ukrainian state. Eide has also said that Norway is actively working to provide Ukraine with more missiles and to develop partnerships with Ukrainian defense manufacturers.

On January 14, the European Commission may announce a legislative proposal to provide Ukraine with a EUR 90 billion loan from the EU, with the first tranche to be transferred at the beginning of the second quarter of 2026. “We need to propose a number of legislative acts as soon as possible so that we can start disbursing funds (to Ukraine) at the beginning of the second quarter of this year,” said European Commission Spokesperson Balazs Ujvari.

President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda has said that his country is ready to send troops to Ukraine “to support peace” and to join maritime operations.

German defense company Rheinmetall has announced that Ukraine should receive its first Lynx KF41 combat vehicles in early 2026. The contract was signed in December 2025.

As part of the Project  Nightfall, the UK Government has announced a competition for the rapid development of ground-launched ballistic missiles for Ukraine capable of carrying a 200 kg (440 lbs) warhead over a distance of more than 500 km (310 miles).

Norway plans to integrate interceptors or effectors from Ukrainian weapons manufacturers into the NASAMS air defense system.

“This (putin) is a man who must be stopped. This is a war that must be stopped. And our mission is to support Ukraine in its fight today and to help work to secure the peace for the moment,” said UK Defense Secretary John Healey.

Estonia has announced a ban on entry for 261 individuals who participated in the war against Ukraine on the side of the rf.

Western intelligence agencies are recording an increase in covert threats from moscow. This involves systematic destabilization through specific methods of influence. Chief of the British Intelligence MI6 Blaise Metreweli has warned of a complex danger emanating from russia. In her assessment, the kremlin is purposefully forming a so-called export of chaos, promoting instability beyond its own borders.

The rf has extended special measures aimed at overcoming anti-russian sanctions until 2026. Chairman of the state duma vyacheslav volodin has reminded that 30,711 sanctions have been imposed on russia for starting the war against Ukraine.

Price growth in russia will continue in 2026. Experts point out that the risk of a temporary increase in inflation compared to the levels at the end of 2025 is highest at the beginning of the year.

A survey of real sector enterprises has shown that problems in russia’s economy are rapidly growing. The situation had been deteriorating throughout the year, but in the second half it had significantly worsened due to a sharp slowdown in economic growth. In particular, the share of complaints about insufficient effective demand in the russian economy rose to a record level of 70.6%.

Founder of the largest metallurgical holding company “rusal’ oleg deripaska has sharply criticized the state of affairs in russia’s economy and measures to fight inflation. In his opinion, all business-minded and intelligent people in the country share roughly the same view: “We are simply squandering everything that we managed to mobilize in 2022–2023 through such hard and persistent work.”

By the end of 2025, the growth of the russian economy had slowed sharply, approaching stagnation. According to rosstat, GDP growth for the 11 months was only 1%. Output by basic activity in November fell by 0.5% for the first time since February 2023. At the same time, consumer spending at the end of December fell by 3.1% compared to the same period last year.

In 2025, the average monthly expenditure of russians surveyed decreased by an average of 15% compared to 2024.

Employers in russia will be able to send employees for psychiatric examination if signs of mental disorders are detected based on the results of medical examinations from March 1, 2026.

Last year proved to be so difficult for automotive logistics in russia that around 15% of players were forced to leave the market. More than 30,000 vehicles were seized by leasing companies in 2025, and more than 7,000 carriers are in the process of bankruptcy.

Last year, sales of new trucks in the rf fell by 51% to 61,500 vehicles.

Freight traffic on the “russian railways” (rzd) network in 2025 amounted to 1 billion 116 million tons, having decreased by 5.6% compared to 2024. At this, in 2024, freight traffic decreased by 4.1%.

The top most sought-after jobs in russia include seamstresses, drivers, assemblers, electric and gas welders, and doctors. The structure of vacancies reflects the stable demand for blue-collar professions and the regions’ constant need for qualified personnel for industry, construction, and social sphere.

Visits to home goods shops in russia fell by 18% in the first 11 months of 2025 compared to the same period of 2024, while in 2026 the traffic may decline by another 8-10%. The reason is a decline in transactions in the housing market, which automatically reduces demand for initial furnishing of homes.

On January 1, a limit on the proportion of foreign workers at construction sites came into force in a number of russia’s regions – slightly more than 50% of the total number of employees.

In 2025, russian tourists began to choose shorter vacations and book hotels without meals more often. According to experts, in 2025 russian travelers became very sensitive to the cost of vacations.

In 2025, russians began to save more on medicines. The main reasons for the change in purchasing behavior were the acceleration of price growth for medicines, a decrease in real incomes of the population, and an expansion of the range of available analogues.

Against the background of a large-scale blackout, governor of belgorod region vyacheslav gladkov has stated that the protection of one’s own home “is largely in the hands of the owners”.

In 2025, by 20% fewer commercial premises were introduced in new residential buildings in st. petersburg than in 2024.

In chuvashia, mobile internet was shut down before the New Year. As of January 12, access has not been restored.

In olenegorsk, murmansk region, 80 tons of AI-95 petrol spilled at an oil depot. The incident occurred due to a leak in a pipeline connected to a petrol tank.

In moscow, prices for utilities and public transport fares have risen since January 1. The biggest increases were in housing maintenance (+15%) and payments to the capital repair fund (+10%).

President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda has confirmed that he will continue to take a tough stance on the transit of belarusian fertilizers.

Since the beginning of the migration crisis in 2021, Lithuanian border guards have prevented 24,627 migrants from illegally entering the country from belarus. In less than two weeks this year, Lithuanian border guards have prevented 13 illegal migrants from entering the country from belarus at unauthorized locations.

In December 2025, belarusian dealers sold 5,700 new passenger cars – by 14% fewer than in the same month of 2024.

Sales of MAZ trucks in russia dropped by 43% to 3,274 units in 2025.

Construction and installation work in the rb rose in price by 13% in 2025.