March 22, 2025 Ukraine and the World – Against russia’s Aggression. Sanctions in Action

The plan to finance Ukraine under the ERA (from the proceeds of frozen russian assets) in 2025 is to receive EUR 1 billion monthly, and EUR 6 billion in December to cover the beginning of 2026. “Under the Ukraine Facility, we plan to disburse the next EUR 4.5 billion tranche in April, but this also depends on certain conditions being met,” said European Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis.

“Since Ukraine’s security is also the security of the European Union, Ukraine and its impressive defense industry will be able to participate in a joint order under SAFE,” said President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen.

Lead Spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy of the EU Anitta Hipper has assured that EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas keeps discussing with EU member states her initiative to provide EUR 40 billion in military support to Ukraine and hopes for its approval.

President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda is ready to send troops to Ukraine as part of a potential peacekeeping mission after the ceasefire. “We are talking about very concrete numbers of our military troops, but there should be commitment from all countries in this Coalition to provide this support,” he said.

“Our team is engaged in the logistics of free aid from Canada and allies. We have delivered supplies from NATO members such as Sweden, Finland, Portugal and Denmark,” the Canadian Armed Forces said in a statement.

Donors from Switzerland and the Netherlands have donated to Ukraine nine backup power plants with capacities ranging from 600 kW to 1500 kW.

The EU is preparing a EUR 10 million support package for Ukraine’s independent media.

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European Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis has assured that part of the funds allocated for the Rearm Europe initiative will be spent on the Ukrainian Army. The total amount of the project is EUR 150 billion. He also pointed out that the EU may re-plan assistance to Ukraine from weapons to reconstruction in case of progress in peace talks.

President of France Emmanuel Macron has condemned russia’s recent drone attacks on Ukrainian cities, saying that the kremlin does not share the desire for peace it allegedly claims.

President of the Czech Republic Petr Pavel has emphasized that russia's large-scale attacks on Ukraine, including strikes on civilian targets, at the time when negotiations on a ceasefire and a possible peace agreement are beginning, give no grounds to believe that russia is serious about this.

“Now we all know what the russian “peace” promised by president putin to President Trump really looks like,” said the European Union’s Ambassador to Ukraine Katarína Mathernová after russia's massive nighttime attacks on Ukrainian cities.

“This will deter russia from aggressive actions in the future,” President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda is sure that US troops will not be withdrawn from the Baltic states.

“If russia is worried about foreign military supplies during a proposed ceasefire with Ukraine, it could take the initiative by rejecting shipments of iranian drones and north korean artillery shells,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Radosław Sikorski.

Germany has confiscated the oil tanker eventin (cargo and all), which was flying Panama’s flag and belonged to the “shadow fleet” of the rf. The vessel was carrying 100,000 tons of oil worth more than EUR 40 million and was included in the February package of EU sanctions against russia.

Due to the European sanctions, France bans the broadcasting of TV channels - “sts” and “channel 5” – owned by the russian “national media group”.

In 2025, more than 40 % of russian companies are considering staff reductions: 25.6 % plan to make redundancies within the next three months, about 8 % – by the end of the year, 7 % – still hesitate and are considering redundancies within six months.

In russia, the production of nastoikas (infused vodkas – Transl.) will be significantly reduced. Producers are short of raw materials: 70-75 % of fresh berries and 90-95 % of frozen berries are imported by the rf, and the cost of raw materials is constantly rising.

In 2025, beer supplies to the rf from the EU countries have decreased to 40.4 thousand tons, which is the lowest level since January 2016. The volume of beer imports in January this year is four times smaller than the year-on-year figures and 3.8 times smaller than in December last year.

The rf has faced a growing shortage of medicines with the active ingredient infliximab, which are prescribed for autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and others. In 2024, the russian market received 52 thousand packs of infliximab, which is by 46 % less than in 2023. Replacing these medications with others can lead to an exacerbation of the disease and adverse reactions.

In February, cocoa powder became more expensive by 7 %, halva – by 3.6 %, and sweets with fatty glaze – by 2.6%.

Starting March 22, as part of the “planned gradual adjustment of prices for petroleum products”, petrol prices in the rb will rise by two kopecks.