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

During a procedural vote, the US  Senate backed a bill to impose new sanctions against russia and iran. “Let's be really blunt. China and India are the main culprits here. They purchase the vast majority of oil and gas, they are fuelling russia's war machine and they are doing us no favours anywhere else in the world,” said co-author of the sanctions bill Senator Richard Blumenthal. According to the Senator, the USA  is supporting Ukraine by cutting off the flow of blood money that fuels russia’s slaughter and its criminal invasion, and by forcing putin to come to the negotiating table for the sake of peace.

The European Union is working on sanctions against more than 1,600 companies that are contributing to russia’s war against Ukraine – the largest number of companies blacklisted as part of a single package of measures. The combined annual revenue of those companies exceeds $20 billion, and they employ more than 265,000 people.

Azerbaijan has delivered nearly 40 tons of equipment to Ukraine, which will help strengthen the work of Ukrainian railway workers and support critical infrastructure.

“Can russia afford to fight on two fronts? That would be a strategic mistake. The very act of attacking Ukraine is a strategic mistake and a miscalculation. Therefore, russia will not be able to do anything like that in the near future. I’m not just saying this to reassure people,” said Minister of Defence of Latvia Raivis Melnis regarding russia’s potential attack on NATO.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Radosław Sikorski believes that the current situation in the russia-Ukraine war is putting pressure on putin, so he may resort to “something risky”.  “He (putin) is clearly misinformed. He clearly does not have a realistic picture of his situation and his prospects. Otherwise, he would have agreed to a deal,” Sikorski said.

Starting in 2027, Finland will cease maintenance of power line towers through which part of the international internet traffic passes to russia. The fiber-optic communication lines will be cut, and the towers will be dismantled. Due to the cessation of electricity supplies to Finland starting in 2022, it has become unprofitable to maintain the towers solely for telecommunications operators. At this, after 2022, approximately 60–70% of international internet traffic goes through Finland.

The Ministry of the Interior of Estonia intends to extend the reduced operating hours of three road border crossing points on the border with russia – from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. – for an indefinite period.

In russia, the level of tax deductions from economic sectors not related to the raw materials industry has reached a record high for at least the past 15 years. In monetary terms, the state has collected 15.8 trillion rubles from businesses and citizens – that is, one out of every three rubles of the quarterly GDP of 49.9 trillion rubles.

The summer spike in inflation amid the fuel crisis has dampened russians’ desire to save money. Their propensity to save has declined noticeably. Within a month, the share of respondents who prefer to set aside disposable income rather than spend it on expensive goods fell by 6.5% to 47.9%.

russian grain exports, which bring in $10–15 billion annually to the economy, are facing increasing challenges in the Azov and Black Seas. Three deep-water grain terminals – ksk, the novorossiysk grain terminal (nzt), and ztkt (taman) – have suspended the acceptance of grain delivered by road.

russian military and transportation officials are urging shipowners and traders to install portable missile launchers and machine guns – at their own expense – on grain carriers traveling through the Sea of Azov.

Cruise ships have stopped calling at the port of sochi due to the dangers of navigation in the eastern part of the Black Sea.

The average room rate in moscow hotels fell by 6% in the first half of the year compared to the same period last year. High-end hotels saw an even sharper drop – by 13%.

In penza region, forced mobilization for “special military operation” has resumed. As a result, local residents are forming vigilante groups to protect themselves from recruiters who stop men on the streets and force them to sign contracts with the ministry of defense.

The average price per square meter on the secondary housing market in minsk has risen by 27% since the beginning of the year.