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

In 2026, Spain will provide Ukraine with a new military aid package worth EUR 1 billion.

Germany has allocated EUR 200 million for the purchase of medium-range UAVs for Ukraine.

Norway will provide 200 million US dollars in budget support to Ukraine through the World Bank.

Ukraine and the United Kingdom have signed declaration on enhanced security and defence cooperation.

The United Kingdom will fund the creation of an artificial intelligence center under the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, which will focus on implementing AI technologies on the battlefield. “A team of experts, which has received £500,000 in support, will ensure the maximum use of artificial intelligence to gain an advantage on the battlefield,” reads the official statement.

Ukrainian manufacturers have signed cooperation agreements with Spanish companies in the missile and air defense sectors.

“I want to assure all Ukrainians living here in the Czech Republic and those in Ukraine that many of us are contributing to helping Ukrainians, as well as supporting them in their fight against russian aggression,” said Head of the Civic Democratic Party and a member of the Chamber of Deputies of the Czech Parliament Martin Kupka.

“There are people who are mentally stuck in the past. They don’t understand the connection to the reality of the situation where we live, nor the necessity of making Ukraine an integral part of the European Union and the future European security architecture. I believe this is incredibly important,” said Honorary President of the Pan-European Movement in Austria Karl von Habsburg.

Prime Minister of Latvia Evika Siliņa has confirmed that while Latvia is willing to consider the USA’s requests for support in Middle East operations, the country’s primary focus remains on strengthening NATO’s eastern flank and supporting Ukraine.

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EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas has spoken against calls to normalize relations with russia and restore access to cheap russian energy carriers.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Kęstutis Budrys has stated that a return to normal relations with russia is currently impossible, and has also emphasized the need to maintain pressure on moscow over its war in Ukraine. “A return to normal cooperation with russia is impossible. Sanctions must be maintained and strengthened; we must ensure accountability for war crimes and maintain russia’s diplomatic isolation,” he emphasized.

“…There is an ongoing conflict in Iran, in the Middle East, but we cannot lose focus on what is happening in Ukraine and the need for our support. putin cannot be the one who benefits from the conflict in Iran, whether it’s oil prices or the lifting of sanctions,” said UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia Margus Tsahkna, commenting on recent events in the Middle East, pointed to the threat russia poses to the region. “Long-term stability in the Middle East is important for Estonia... The Iranian regime’s nuclear and missile programs, its support for terrorist groups, its assistance to russia in the war of aggression against Ukraine, and its violent behavior toward its own people pose a threat to the security of the region and the world,” the Minister said.

The Swedish Security Service (Säpo) considers russia to be the main external threat to the country and expects threats from the rf to increase.

russia’s federal budget’s oil and gas revenues, which account for one-fifth of state treasury revenues, will fall by 0.56 trillion rubles (-52%) in March 2026 compared to March 2025.

The risks of chronic imbalance in the rf’s federal budget are intensifying. Revenues are falling behind schedule, expenditures are outpacing it, and without cuts to budget spending, the deficit could double the planned 3.8 trillion rubles.

By the end of 2025, the total public debt of russia’s regions increased by 10.6% and reached 3.5 trillion rubles. At this, the budgets of the rf’s constituent entities were executed with a record aggregate deficit of 1.5 trillion rubles. Debt growth was recorded in 38 regions. The leader is the yamalo-nenets autonomous okrug (a 7.9-fold increase). In 2026, the public debt of the rf’s regions may reach 3.6 trillion rubles, with a debt burden of 19–20%.

Since the beginning of 2026, every second resident of russia has been offered to pay for goods or services in cash, and every third has faced this repeatedly. 18% of russians receive such offers on a regular basis. Businesses are moving into the shadow economy amid VAT hikes, revisions to insurance contributions, and a lower VAT threshold for enterprises under the simplified tax system.

The actual poverty rate in russia may be times higher than official statistics’ figures. According to rosstat, the share of people with incomes below the poverty line fell from 7.1% to 6.7% last year. While according to the Levada Center’s poll, the share of russians who estimate their income to be above the subsistence minimum fell from 48% to 41% in March.

In russia, car loans have effectively become inaccessible to most citizens, as banks approve only about 20% of applications. All because over 60% of russians earn less than 60,000 rubles, which meets the credit requirements. Against this background, experts predict stagnation in the automotive market.

The net loss of the united company “rusal” for 2025 amounted to $455 million, compared to the profit of $803 million a year earlier.

Amid billions in losses, “russian railways” will fire 15% of its central office staff – about 6,000 people. In addition to layoffs, the company also plans to cut costs, particularly for fuel, electricity, and repairs.

“yandex” will be closing some business units. The company plans to fire several hundreds of employees, including those in the search services and artificial intelligence divisions.

Following the tightening of the European Union’s visa policy, Schengen multiple-entry visas have almost ceased to be issued to russian citizens. In the first quarter of 2026, by at least 90% fewer multiple-entry visas were approved for russians than during the same period in 2025. Some travel agencies report a 99% drop in approvals during this period. The total number of “multiple-entry visas” issued to russian citizens in 2025 was estimated at 50,000–99,000.

A draft law has been submitted to the state duma prohibiting the media from accusing officials without a court ruling. If it becomes a law, virtually any journalistic investigations, critical articles about officials and businesses, as well as reports on criminal cases and corruption could be targeted.

The ministry of justice of the rf has proposed allowing convicted prisoners to remain in pretrial detention centers if they are employed in production facilities located there. In this way, the government is preparing for the emergence of “superprisons” in russia, where both detainees and defendants, as well as convicted prisoners, will be held.

The fsb has drafted an order regulating the holding of suspects and defendants in detainee holding rooms, according to which those escorted by the fsb must be handcuffed practically the entire time they are in court.

The ministry of healthcare of the rf has recommended that women who state during reproductive health screenings that they do not wish to have children, should be sent to a psychologist for consultation.

The number of cases of high and extremely high air pollution in russia in 2025 increased by 41% to 336 incidents. The 2025 figure was the highest in the last four years. All cases of extremely high pollution were linked to hydrogen sulfide emissions.

Users of the state-run messaging app Max are complaining en masse about being subscribed to propaganda channels from which they cannot unsubscribe.

z-propagandist anastasia kashevarova has reported cases of people with severe diseases and signs of disability being recruited into the russian occupying army. Such cases, she points out, are not isolated.

In belgorod, doctors have stopped receiving “military” bonuses due to a budget shortfall.

Deputies of the irkutsk regional parliament supported a draft law on sharp reduction of payments to the families of those killed and wounded in the war against Ukraine. Such measures are “dictated by the need to balance the budget amid limited financial resources”.

Workers at a plywood factory in komi held a spontaneous meeting due to months of unpaid wages.

In 2025–2026, due to the crisis in the kuzbass, approximately 20 coal mining operations were shut down, including open-pit mines and underground mines – the “inskaya”, “chortynsko-koksovaya”, “spiridonovskaya”, “zarechnaya”, “alekseyevskaya” and “kazskaya” mines. More than 6,000 miners in the kuzbass lost their jobs. At this, most of them were not paid their wages. According to the workers, they have been unable to receive their earned wages for over a year. Some are still waiting for payments totaling one million rubles.

In novosibirsk region, court rulings have begun to be issued against farmers who oppose the government’s campaign to seize and slaughter livestock, citing the article on organizing mass gatherings in public places.

The wear and tear of water supply networks in tomsk region stands at 60–70%, and that of power grids – at 77.8%.

Due to a lack of funds, the moscow government has excluded funding for the design of several metro sections for 2026. This concerns a section of the rublevo-arkhangelskaya line. Funding for the extension of the troitskaya line has also been canceled, while expenditures for the extension of the filovskaya and sokolnicheskaya lines have been removed from the program.

“belarus is training migrants on how to fight  EU border guards,” stated Head of the Security Service of Latvia Normunds Mežviets, adding that in belarus, migrants are being prepared for violent confrontations with EU border guards in special camps and then sent to the border.

Detention centers across belarus have been banned from providing information about detainees to anyone other than their relatives.

belarus’ GDP fell by 1.2% over the first two months of the year.

Residents of belarus owe banks 44.9 billion rubles.

Over the past two months, by 34.3% fewer housing units were built in belarus than a year earlier.