May 1, 2025 Ukraine and the World – Against russia’s Aggression. Sanctions in Action

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Kęstutis Budris commenting on putin’s statement about a “three-day truce,” called not to fall for the rf’s propaganda but to continue to put pressure on the aggressor.

“A three-day ceasefire is absurd,” US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg commented on putin’s proposal.

“russia does not miss any opportunity to demonstrate its vile cruelty towards Ukrainians, killing and torturing, as happened with Viktoria Roshchyna, a brave Ukrainian journalist who was not only brutally killed, but also tortured. So, this also clearly shows that life under russian occupation is not an option, it is not a safe option for Ukrainians,” said Spokesperson for the European Commission Anitta Hipper.

Ukraine has successfully passed the screening – analysis of legislation – in the section “Entrepreneurship and Industrial Policy” as part of its preparation for EU accession.

Head of the European Investment Bank’s Regional Hub for Eastern Europe Kristina Mikulova has said that the EIB is evaluating a pilot social housing project in Ukraine, and the first agreement may be signed as early as 2025.

The European Commission is investing EUR 910 million under the European Defense Fund to create a strong and innovative defense industry in Europe, and the Ukrainian defense industry will be involved in the program.

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Spokesperson for the US Department of State Tammy Bruce has said that north korea, by participating in russia’s war against Ukraine, is contributing to the prolongation of hostilities and is therefore also responsible for the bloodshed.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France has stated that russia is responsible for a number of cyberattacks against the country in recent years, including the hacking of Emmanuel Macron’s election campaign in 2017.

Latvia has banned russian singer kristina orbakayte and Serbo-Croatian musician Goran Bregović from entering the country.

In Latvia, a man who fought against Ukraine on the side of russia has been sentenced to six years in prison.

The Conservative faction in the Lithuanian Seimas proposes to introduce draft laws banning russian citizens from buying housing near military and strategic facilities.

“alrosa”’s net profit in the first quarter of 2025 fell by 29 % year-on-year to RUB 14.48 billion, the company reported. Revenue fell by 42 % to RUB 58.13 billion from RUB 99.6 billion a year earlier.

The net loss of PJSC “inter rao” in the first quarter of 2025 amounted to 328 million rubles.

In the first quarter of 2025, electricity exports from the rf decreased by 2.9 % year-on-year to 2.004 billion kWh.

Exchange prices for premium-95 petrol have increased by 1.02 % to RUB 61,775 a ton, and for regular-92 – by 1.74% to RUB 56968 a ton.

From May 1 to May 11, the average cost of hotel accommodation increased by 20 % year-on-year to 6.3 thousand rubles for a day.

In the first quarter of 2025, russia’s two largest banks – sberbank and vtb – recorded a surge in defaults on mortgage and unsecured loans.

In January–March, the volume of mortgage loans with signs of problems on sberbank’s balance sheet increased by 90 % to RUB 285 billion. The share of such loans in the mortgage portfolio doubled and reached its highest level since 2022. The volume of overdue consumer loans increased by 22.5 % over the quarter to RUB 610 billion. The share of such loans in the total portfolio increased from 12.4 % to 16.1 %. At this, the share of loans overdue for more than three months increased from 9.3 % to 10.4 %. This is also the highest value in three years.

In 2024, the staffing shortage in the rf reached 7.6 % of the total number of employed people, which is 2.2 million people out of 27.2 million. This level has become an anti-record for the entire period of observation since 2008. The greatest need for personnel was recorded among drivers (216 thousand people), industrial workers and mechanics (166 thousand), engineers (141 thousand), construction workers and general laborers (112 thousand), and equipment operators (101 thousand). In terms of the total number of employees, the shortage is particularly acute in agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, with more than 15 % of jobs remaining vacant.

In Astrakhan region – the main vegetable producer in russia – there is a shortage of workers in agriculture due to the introduction of quotas for hiring migrants.

russians will be allowed to be transported on airplanes older than 50 years due to a shortage of aircrafts. In particular, the service life of Yak-40 passenger planes, which operate on socially important routes in the northwest and the Far East, will be extended from the current 50 to 60 years. This is the result of international sanctions over russia’s war against Ukraine.

The Prosecutor General’s Office of Lithuania asks the court to extend for another three months the arrest of Lithuanian citizens Mindaugas Januitis and Tatyana Beletskaya, who are suspected of collaborating with special services of the rb.

The United Transitional Cabinet of Belarus is to be recognized as a “terrorist organization” – a corresponding statement was sent to the supreme court by prosecutor general of the rb andrei shvets.

While the rb’s authorities are touting their successes, the board’s resolution “On the results of the agricultural sector in 2024, the assessment of personnel in terms of meeting the targets and setting tasks for 2025” shows that more than a third of the targets (22 out of 58) have not been met. For example, milk yield: against a target of 6,230 kilograms per cow, 4,333 kilograms were produced in Mogilev region (69.6 % of the target) and 4,504 kilograms – in Vitebsk region (72.3 %).

The number of cattle in the country decreased by 2.3 % against the target of 2 % growth. The number of calves decreased by 20,700 heads nationwide. The worst situation was in Minsk region – in 19 out of 22 districts, this indicator was negative. The situation is especially difficult in Gomel region. In 2024, milk production in the region fell short of the plan by 16.5 %, and meat production – by 11.6 %.