Belgium

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Netherlands and 7 other EU countries have called for an urgent strengthening of civil preparedness for man-made and natural disasters. They insist on accelerating work on threat analysis.

France has resumed supplying high-quality aviation fuel for Ukrainian fighters. The next batch worth 85 million hryvnias has already crossed the border with the assistance of Polish partners.

The organizers of Wimbledon-2025 have announced the list of participants, which includes five Ukrainians: Svitolina, Kostyuk, Yastremska, Kalinina and Starodubtseva. The tournament will be held from June 30 to July 13.

Belgium will provide Ukraine with a military aid package of €1 billion in 2025, which includes 20 Cerberus air defense systems and other equipment. A significant part of the funds will return to the Belgian economy.

Eurojust has begun coordinating an international investigation into corruption schemes in the procurement of military equipment for NATO. NSPA employees are suspected.

13 countries of the Council of Europe have signed the Convention on the Protection of the Legal Profession. Ukraine is absent among them, although it was expected that it would be one of the first to ratify the document.

An explosion threat was announced at the Belgian airport of Charleroi. A suspected bomb was found on board a Ryanair plane arriving from Porto, flights have been suspended.

The President of Ukraine stated that in case of Russia's refusal to cease fire, sanctions should be applied. The preparation of the 17th package of sanctions against the Russian Federation with the participation of many countries is also underway.

Only 14 EU countries have formally requested increased defense spending, casting doubt on the European Commission's €800 billion ReArm Europe plan due to limited budgetary capacity.

Euroclear will redistribute 3 billion euros of frozen Russian funds to Western investors to compensate for losses from Moscow's actions. Russia has already arrested 3 billion euros of Euroclear funds.

The US is transferring decommissioned F-16s to Ukraine for spare parts to support the F-16 fleet provided by Europe. Non-operational aircraft stored at the landfill have already been sent via Poland.

Against the backdrop of Russian aggression against Ukraine, 16 countries in the EU have initiated a request to activate the "exception clause". This should facilitate the transition to higher defense spending at the national level.

On April 29, Ukraine celebrates Football Day. The national team played at Euro 2024, in the League of Nations, and is preparing for the selection for the 2026 World Cup.

Due to a nationwide strike by security and ground staff at the airport terminal, Brussels Airport is canceling all flights. Passengers are promised to rebook tickets.

The FMBTech project with a budget of 19 million euros has officially started in the EU, bringing together 26 organizations from 13 countries to modernize tanks for modern combat conditions. The project aims to create maneuverable and intelligent tanks.

More than 100 enterprises with Belgian capital operate in Ukraine. In 2023, they paid over UAH 720 million in taxes, according to the head of the State Tax Service, Ruslan Kravchenko.

Cases of a new, more dangerous strain of monkeypox, Clade I, common in Africa, have been recorded in Europe. Cases have been detected in a number of countries, including Great Britain, Germany and France.

The Origami for Ukraine installation, supported by the Andriy Matyukha Foundation, has opened in Kyiv. The project aims to raise funds for the Kyiv Center for Rehabilitation Treatment.

The Ministry of Defense received a batch of equipment from the IT coalition, funded by Luxembourg and Iceland, worth almost 2 million euros. The delivery included access points, routers, charging stations and telephones.

Suspects in the 2016 robbery of Kim Kardashian in Paris for 10 million euros will face trial soon. The men, aged 69 and 71, known as "grandpa robbers", are awaiting sentencing in May.

Hungary can force the EU to lift sanctions against €210 billion of frozen Russian assets. This will remove the guarantee on loans to Ukraine and shift their coverage to EU and G7 taxpayers.

Ukraine women's national ice hockey team defeated Belgium in the fourth match of the World Championship. This victory guaranteed the team maintaining their place in Division IIB for next year.

The Cold War-era complex housing NATO's top commanders in Mons will get a new building by 2030. Construction of the facility for the Supreme Allied Commander Europe will begin in May 2026.

The European Commission is exploring legal ways for EU companies to terminate long-term gas contracts with Russia without paying large penalties. This is part of the EU's plan to abandon Russian fuel by 2027.

Indian jeweler Mehul Choksi has been detained in Belgium on suspicion of $2 billion fraud. He is a key figure in the Punjab National Bank scandal.

The threat of radicalization of children is growing in Europe due to online content. Extremists use porn, scenes of violence and social networks to influence teenagers, which leads to attempted terrorist attacks.

According to a BBC source, three missiles were fired at the plane. The friendly fire version is excluded, as Ukrainian air defenses were not operating in the area of the mission.

Ukrainian manufacturers of components for weapons can receive a grant of up to UAH 8 million to expand production. The state will finance 50% of the project cost.

Ukraine and Belgium will cooperate in the defense sector and increase joint production. The parties also discussed sanctions against Russia and Ukraine's European integration.

International project raised funds for the treatment of wounded Ukrainian soldiers.