Ukraine’s economy has suffered a sharp decline due to Russia’s war, a senior aide says
A view of the damage after a market was hit by Russian attacks as the Russian-Ukrainian war continues in Bakhmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine on July 25, 2022.
Metin Atkas| Anatolian Agency | Getty Images
Russia’s attack on Ukraine has caused significant damage to the country’s economy, according to a top aide to Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky.
“Right now, we expect that the Ukrainian economy will show a decline of about 35% to 40%, which is a huge decline,” Oleg Ustenko, Zelensky’s economic adviser, told CNBC’s “Capital Connection.”
“But why did this decline happen? [is] because I would say 50%, half of our businesses are not working right now or can’t work at full capacity.”
“When the economy declines, then the revenues in the budget also decrease. Again, the reason for this is the Russian invasion,” he added.
— Sumati Bala
Germany fears a “serious” situation as Russian gas flows are set to decline again
German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said gas supplies to industry would be cut before private homes or critical infrastructure such as hospitals experience gas shortages.
Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images
Germany’s Economy Minister Robert Habeck has warned that the country is facing a serious energy crisis as Russia prepares to cut gas flows to Europe.
“We have a serious situation. It’s time for everyone to understand this,” Habeck told broadcaster ARD on Monday evening, adding that Germany must reduce its gas consumption. “We’re working on it,” Habeck said.
Habek said gas supplies to industry would be cut before private homes or critical infrastructure such as hospitals experience gas shortages.
“Of course, it’s a great concern, which I share, that this could happen. Then certain production lines in Germany or Europe will simply not be produced anymore. We must avoid this with all the forces we have.” The way is to reduce gas consumption by 15%-20% in Germany, he said.
“If we can do that, then with all the measures we’ve put in place, we have a very good chance of not having to take that step.”
Just days after resuming gas flows on its Nord Stream 1 pipeline last Thursday following a 10-day outage for routine maintenance, Russian gas giant Gazprom said on Monday it would once again cut daily gas supplies through the pipeline to 33 million cubic meters meters from early Wednesday.
This means that the flow of gas, which is already only 40% of capacity, will drop another half from tomorrow.
Gazprom said it was to make repairs to the turbine, but that claim was denied by Western officials. Germany’s Habek said the reasoning was a “farce”, while Ukraine’s President Zelensky said Putin was continuing his “gas war” against Europe, a continent that traditionally relies on Russia for about 45% of its annual gas supplies.
— Holly Elite
‘No indication’ Russian missiles hit Ukrainian warship, munitions in Odessa, UK says
Britain’s Ministry of Defense said that, contrary to Russia’s claims, there was “no indication” that a missile attack on the port of Odessa last weekend actually hit a Ukrainian warship and a stockpile of anti-ship missiles.
“On July 24, 2022, Russian cruise missiles struck a dock in the Ukrainian port of Odessa. The Russian Defense Ministry claims it hit a Ukrainian warship and a stockpile of anti-ship missiles. There are no indications that such targets were at the location where the missiles hit,” the ministry said.
The comments come after Russia said it used precision-guided Caliber missiles to destroy a ship repair plant in Odessa, destroying a warship in dock and a depot with US-supplied Harpoon missiles. The strike knocked out production facilities at the Ukrainian Navy’s Ship Repair and Modernization Plant, a Russian general said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack an act of “barbarism.”
Port of Odessa on July 20, 2022.
Bulent Kilic | Afp | Getty Images
In its latest intelligence, the UK noted that “Russia almost certainly perceives anti-ship missiles as a key threat limiting the effectiveness of their Black Sea fleet.”
“This significantly undermined the overall invasion plan, as Russia could not realistically attempt an amphibious assault to capture Odessa. Russia will continue to prioritize efforts to degrade and destroy Ukraine’s anti-ship capabilities. However, Russia’s targeting processes are very likely to be routinely undermined by dated intelligence, poor planning and a top-down approach to operations,” he adds.
— Holly Elite
Kharkiv shelled at night; The cities of Donetsk are under continuous shelling
Ukraine’s second-largest city Kharkiv came under shelling overnight, with more shelling targeting the city, Kharkiv Mayor Igor Terekhov said on Telegram.
“The night shelling of the city again. One of the districts of Kharkiv, which is closer to the city center, was hit. Traditionally, it was next to a building that had nothing to do with military infrastructure,” Terekhov said, adding that it was still unknown if there were any casualties after the strikes.
Firefighters conduct search and rescue operations after Russian forces hit a cultural center in Chuhuyev, Kharkiv Oblast, Ukraine, on July 25, 2022.
Anatolian Agency | Anatolian Agency | Getty Images
In its latest military update on Tuesday, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said Kharkiv and surrounding areas were attacked by tanks, barrel and rocket artillery, while Russian forces continued their attacks on the Donetsk region of Donbass, with Kramatorsk, Slavyansk and Bakhmut and the surrounding settlements were shelled.
A damaged market in Bakhmut, Donetsk region, on July 25, 2022.
Anatolian Agency | Anatolian Agency | Getty Images
Nearby, Russia also “concentrated its main efforts in attempts to improve the tactical position and create conditions for an advance towards the cities of Siversk and Soledar. Enemy units are replenishing stocks of ammunition, fuel and oil,” a spokesman for Ukraine’s general staff said on Facebook.
— Holly Elite
At least 100 nuclear power plant workers kidnapped by Russian troops, power company president says
A Russian serviceman patrols the grounds of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant in Energodar on May 1, 2022. The Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, seized by Russian forces in March, is located in southeastern Ukraine and is the largest nuclear power plant in Europe and among the 10 largest in the world. This photo was taken during a media trip organized by the Russian military.
Andrey Borodulin | Afp | Getty Images
The president of a Ukrainian nuclear power plant company said Russian forces had kidnapped about 100 of its employees.
“There are about 500 Russian soldiers on the territory of the headquarters. They are the ones who let employees into their workplaces and control everything that happens on the territory of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant,” Petro Kotin of Energoatom said, according to a translation by NBC News.
Kotin added that Russian troops took identification badges and entered a secure area within the nuclear power plant. He said that “it is not known what they were doing there”.
He said they may not have followed the proper security controls and “it’s entirely possible they got radioactive contamination on their clothes outside the screening area.”
— Amanda Macias
Putin is waging a “gas war” against Europe, Zelensky says
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with participants of the Bolshaya Peremena national school competition via video link in Moscow, Russia, July 20, 2022.
Pavel Birkin | Sputnik | Reuters
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is waging a “gas war” against Europe.
“Russia will not resume gas supplies to European countries as it is contractually obligated to do. And this is an open gas war that Russia is waging against a united Europe,” Zelensky said during a nightly address on the Telegram messaging app.
“They don’t care what will happen to the people, how they will suffer from hunger due to the blockade of the ports or from the winter cold and poverty,” Zelensky said, adding that Russia was engaged in “various forms of terror.”
He also urged world leaders to cut trade ties with Russia “as much as possible” to put pressure on Moscow.
— Amanda Macias
Russia’s Gazprom further cuts gas flow on Nord Stream 1 pipeline, citing repairs
The supplier of Nord Stream 1 said that gas flows have resumed after repair work.
Hannibal Hanschke | Reuters
Russia’s Gazprom said it would further cut natural gas flows through a major pipeline to Europe to 20% of capacity, citing equipment repairs.
The Russian state-owned company tweeted that it would cut the “daily output” of the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline to Germany to 33 million cubic meters from Wednesday. The head of Germany’s grid regulator confirmed the reduction.
The move comes after Gazprom raised questions about the return of a portion that has been at the center of tensions over natural gas supplies through the pipeline, saying it was not satisfied with the documents it had received.
The company cut gas flows through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline by 60% in mid-June, citing suspected technical problems with equipment that partner Siemens Energy had sent to Canada for major repairs and could not be returned due to sanctions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Germany rejected Gazprom’s technical explanation for the gas cut, saying repeatedly that it was just a pretext for the Kremlin’s political decision to sow uncertainty and push up energy prices further.
— Associated Press
Ukraine hopes to start exporting agricultural products on Tuesday, an official said
Farmers harvest a wheat field near Melitopol in Ukraine amid the Russian offensive.
Olga Maltseva | Afp | Getty Images
Despite the Russian missile attack on a Ukrainian port over the weekend, Ukraine will begin to…
Add Comment