Another driver has tragically lost their life at the blockaded Polish border, this time a Ukrainian trucker falling ill and passing away en route to a clinic. Two previous Ukrainian truckers had already perished in the road blockade initiated by Polish drivers since November. The Polish drivers are up in arms, claiming Ukrainian truckers are undercutting Turkish prices and urging the EU to reintroduce a permit system for Ukrainian companies operating in the EU, as well as allowing European drivers to enter Ukraine. Meanwhile, Slovakian drivers ended their protests at border crossings last Friday.
Austria has abandoned its blockade of the latest EU sanctions package against Russia, with Ukraine removing Austrian Raiffeisen Bank International from a blacklist. Austria had pushed for the bank's removal from the Ukrainian list of "international sponsors of the war."
The Sumy region in northeastern Ukraine was hit with 138 explosions within a day, with Russian armed forces using artillery, mines, mortar shells, and drones to bombard several communities. One civilian was injured by mortar fire in the village of Yunakivska.
Nikopol is under constant shelling, with Russian armed forces attacking the city and surrounding communities multiple times from morning till evening with artillery and drones. Three men were injured by mine explosions, and several buildings were damaged.
An air alarm sounded in parts of Ukraine in the evening, following a series of drone attacks the previous night, prompting warnings of missiles on social networks for several regions in the center and east of the country. Combat drones were sighted over the south from Kherson towards Mykolaiv, and the military also issued warnings of drones in the north-eastern region of Kharkiv.
Moscow has criticized the EU's latest sanctions package against Russia, labeling it as causing more harm to the EU itself. The package includes an oil import ban, a tightening of the price cap on Russian oil exports to third countries, and trade restrictions, along with punitive measures against individuals and organizations supporting the Russian war against Ukraine.
According to British intelligence services, the cyber attack on the Ukrainian mobile phone provider Kyivstar was probably the most serious attack on Ukrainian networks since the start of the war, causing disruptions for at least 48 hours. The attack disrupted mobile and internet services for around 24 million customers, affected air alerts, and caused disruptions to banks and ATMs.
The Ukrainian army continues to ward off dozens of Russian attacks along the front in the east and south of the country, with most attacks centering around Avdiivka. The battle for Avdiivka has been going on for weeks, with Russian troops inflicting heavy losses in the process while advancing solely due to their superior numbers and technology.
Numerous locations in the Ukrainian region of Zaporizhia were under fire, with Russian forces attacking 19 towns and villages and using attack drones. No casualties were reported.
Three more of the estimated tens of thousands of abducted Ukrainian children have been returned to their families, bringing the total number of retrieved children to over 500. Ukraine estimates at least 20,000 children have been abducted by Russia or Russian-controlled areas.
Two deaths were reported in Ukrainian bombardments of Russian-occupied territory in the Kherson region, with several missiles fired at the village of Nova Majashka, with one missile supposedly hitting during aid supply distribution.
Hungary threatened to veto Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen zone if Bulgaria does not abolish the transit tax on Russian gas. While Western European countries have been scaling back their Russian gas imports, Hungary receives 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia annually, mainly via Bulgaria and Serbia.
Insights:
- The ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia persists, with numerous regions facing invasions and bombardments.
- Cyber attacks have been a significant factor in the ongoing conflict, with intelligence agencies citing the recent attack on Kyivstar as a major threat to Ukrainian networks.
- Diplomatic efforts and economic sanctions by the international community have been used to try and de-escalate the situation.
- Several border blockades related to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine have caused disruptions in trade and logistics.
- The war has resulted in the abduction of thousands of Ukrainian children and has caused significant humanitarian crises.
- Hungary has utilized its leverage in the EU and NATO to continue procuring Russian gas, despite many EU countries scaling back their reliance on Russian energy.
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