October 4, 2023 Ukraine and the World – Against russia’s Aggression. Sanctions in Action

The European Parliament has supported the creation of the €50 billion Ukrainian Facility.

High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell emphasizes that the strongest security obligations for Ukraine from the EU will be its full membership in the European Union.

The next meeting of the EU-Ukraine Association Council, which monitors progress in the implementation of the Association Agreement, will be held in December.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has said that the United States is preparing a new aid package for Ukraine, which will be sent soon.

Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Doug Bush has assured that the US Army is ready to send ATACMS missiles equipped with cluster munitions to Ukraine as soon as the decision is approved by President Joe Biden.

Spokesperson for the US Department of State Matthew Miller has pointed out that over the past few weeks, Ukraine has been taking aggressive measures to combat corruption and called for this work to be continued. Miller criticized Congress for failing to approve much-needed aid for Ukraine. At the same time, he stressed that “the overwhelming majority in both Houses of Congress support the continuation of assistance to Ukraine, as it concerns not only Ukraine”.

The United States and Denmark have announced a partnership to reduce the vulnerability and strengthen the resilience of Ukraine's critical infrastructure to cyber threats, which will be implemented through the USAID Cyber Security for Critical Infrastructure of Ukraine project. Denmark will invest $ 2.8 million (DKK 20 million) in this project.

Denmark will allocate 100 million Danish kroner (over EUR13 million) for a joint European order of 155 mm artillery munitions for Ukraine under the auspices of the European Defense Agency (EDA).

The government of Germany has updated the list of military aid sent to Ukraine. Our country has received equipment for Leopard tanks; 14 Bandvagn 206 (BV206) tracked all-terrain vehicles; Biber bridge-layer; 2 x WISENT 1 engineering machines; 99 satellite communication terminals; 21 vehicles for border protection; 239 rugged phones; 11 HX81 truck tractors; 12 semi-trailers; almost 33 thousand rounds of 40 mm munition; 20 thousand protective glasses; 1,202 infusion pumps (medical equipment).

Ukraine has received the first Leopard 2A4 tanks, which were repaired on the basis of the Polish company Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa.

A group of Ukrainian mortar gunners has completed training in Lithuania on the use of 120-mm mortars.

Minister of Defense of the Republic of Slovenia, Marjan Šarec, has said that since February 24, 2022, Slovenia has provided Ukraine with armored vehicles in an amount sufficient to equip one armored brigade.

Minister of Defense of North Macedonia, Slavyanka Petrovska, has said that her country has provided military aid to Ukraine totaling 16% of its annual defense budget.

Former Chief of the General Staff of the United Kingdom (2018-2022), General Mark Carleton-Smith, believes that Ukraine's membership in NATO is in the interests of the Alliance itself not only as replenishing its ranks with a powerful army, but also from a strategic position of confronting authoritarianism in general.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Gabrielius Landsbergis has expressed confidence that Ukraine will be able to carry out the reforms needed for joining the European Union.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic Jan Lipavský has pointed out that Prague defends its position on the start in the autumn or early next year of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the EU.

Polish Minister of Agriculture Robert Telus has said that veterinary, sanitary and phytosanitary controls of Ukrainian grain transiting through Lithuania are being transferred from the Ukrainian-Polish border to Lithuanian territory, to the Lithuanian port of Klaipeda.

rf

Norway has imposed new sanctions against russia, joining the 11th package of EU sanctions. The sanctions include a ban on the transit through the territory of the rf of “goods and technologies that may contribute to an increase in russia's military and technological potential or the development of the defense and security sector”. The restrictions apply to aviation and space products, luxury goods, certain types of iron and steel, transportation of trailers and semi-trailers with russian registration. At the same time, Norwegian authorities stressed that they are ready to impose a ban on the export of “certain goods and technologies” to countries that are used to circumvent the anti-russian sanctions regime.

The Consulate General of Finland in st. petersburg has stopped working.

Energy Minister of Moldova Victor Parlicov has said that Chisinau no longer intends to buy russian gas for government-controlled territories.

Against the background of the fuel crisis in russia and the government's ban on the export of petrol and diesel fuel, russian oil companies will lose 145 billion rubles in profit in September.

russian authorities are trying to further prevent foreign companies from leaving russia and for this purpose are introducing a tax of 15% of the total market value of assets instead of the current 10%.

The ministry of foreign affairs of the rf agreed with the government on a bill to increase visa fees and abolish visa benefits for citizens of the European Union, Denmark, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, justifying this not only by the desire to “synchronize the regime of collecting russian visa fees”, but also by the possibility of making 2.8 times more profit from the sale of visas. The cost of visas will increase from €35-70 ($37-73) to $50-300.

According to a study by the federal agency for ethnic affairs, 43.5% of migrants in russia prefer Sharia to secular legislation of the rf, 24% of respondents are ready to participate in protests to defend the right to live in russia according to Sharia norms, 15.3% are ready to participate in illegal political actions of migrants. According to the same study, more than 44% of the migrants surveyed are “ready, despite the dissatisfaction of the local population, to behave in accordance with the norms and traditions accepted in their society”, and half of the entire migrant community “feels an obvious need for such behavior”.

The social fund of russia predicted a decrease in the birth rate in the rf over the next three years: in 2024, 1.172 million people will be born (the lowest since the early 1990s), in 2025 – 1.153 million people, in 2026 – 1.143 million people.

On October 4, air raid sirens will operate throughout russia: sirens and loudspeakers will announce air raid alarms, the broadcasts of all-russian television and radio channels will inform about the testing of warning systems, the ministry of emergency situations of the rf has reported. Only in Crimea, temporarily occupied by the rf, there are no plans to turn on air raid sirens.

At the moscow stock exchange, the US dollar exchange rate at the opening of trading exceeded 100 rubles.

Since October 9, Kazakhstan has banned international transportation from third countries using re-coupling or reloading. The ban will also affect belarusian trucks.

Against the background of a significant crop failure, the government of belarus has extended restrictions on the export of grain from the country, as well as some other crops. In particular, wheat, rye, barley, oats, corn, buckwheat, millet, and triticale fell under the restrictions.

At a meeting on the export of belarusian goods, self-proclaimed president of belarus lukashenko admitted that there are serious problems with receiving payment for potash fertilizers and petroleum products supplied by belarus.

Since 2019, the birth rate in belarus has been decreasing by about 10% annually. According to the experts of the republican scientific and practical center “mother and child”, this is already an anti-record since at least 1950. Official data on the birth rate in the country are classified.