Ukraine

The Ukrainian government has approved a draft law ratifying an agreement with France for €200 million in grants. The funds will be used to restore critical infrastructure and support priority sectors of Ukraine's economy.

Two children and a woman returned from the occupied Luhansk region to the government-controlled territory as part of family reunification. Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets emphasized Ukraine's interest in returning citizens home.

The head of the Odesa RMA and the mayor of Odesa have different positions on street renaming, but this does not mean a conflict. The changes are aimed at strengthening the Ukrainian identity, sparking discussions among the public and cultural figures.

China and Brazil have prepared a 6-point plan to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. According to Beijing, more than 110 countries have responded positively to this initiative, which provides for a peace conference.

The National Bank estimated GDP growth in the second quarter of 2024 at 3. 7% and forecasts a slowdown to 3.1-2.3% in the third and fourth quarters. The reasons are the destruction of energy infrastructure and electricity shortages.

In Kyiv, a man was sentenced to 8 years in prison for setting fire to 10 vehicles and damaging 3 vehicles of military personnel. The crimes were committed from September 2022 to August 2023 out of hostility to the military.

What will the easing of the ban on converting foreign currency loans into hryvnia for businesses change.

Education Minister Oksen Lisovyi announced new criteria for funding universities, including graduate employment. An experiment with tuition grants worth UAH 308 million is also being implemented.

Law enforcement officers exposed an official of the Ministry of Justice and her accomplice in an attempt to illegally seize funds of an agricultural enterprise. In exchange for USD 120 thousand, they promised to make changes to the real estate register.

The Ukrainian government has approved a draft agreement with the EU to receive €50 million for port repairs. During the 11 months of the sea corridor's operation, cargo turnover in the ports of Greater Odesa amounted to 60 million tons.

The Minister of Education of Ukraine said that about 200,000 men of mobilization age are entering universities for fictitious studies. The Ministry of Education and Science is conducting inspections and analyzing anomalies in the enrollment of men aged 25+.

Economy Minister Sergiy Marchenko said that the tranche from the US will be enough until early September. The EU is also expected to receive €4.2 billion under the Ukraine Facility program.

The Prime Minister announced the return of 310 thousand hectares of agricultural land after demining. Ukraine has 47 mine action operators and more than 2,200 deminers, and the government allocates UAH 3.5 billion for humanitarian demining.

The President of Ukraine has appointed Mykhailo Melnyk as the head of Sumy District State Administration. The corresponding decree No. 82/2024-rp of August 2 was published on the website of the head of state.

Prime Minister Shmyhal reports $12. 4 billion in food exports from Ukraine in the first half of the year. The government is supporting farmers with grants, compensation, and soft loans, as well as helping with logistics and demining.

Education Minister Oksen Lisovyi announced that students in grades 5-7 will be fully provided with new textbooks by the start of the school year. The Ministry of Education is also working on a program to print workbooks for the New Ukrainian School.

The occupiers have loaded the stolen grain onto the 'Matros Kishka' ship in Sevastopol to be shipped to Syria. Guerrillas spotted the ship near Yalta, noting the enhanced security measures, which indicates the fear of the occupiers.

Ukrzaliznytsia has started selling tickets for the first children's compartment car on the Kharkiv-Yasinia train on August 8. The car, created in cooperation with UNICEF, is equipped for comfortable travel for children aged 0 to 8 and their parents.

Oleh Kolodiy and Danylo Konovalov took seventh place in the three-meter springboard diving final at the 2024 Olympics. The Ukrainian athletes scored 348.27 points over six jumps.

In 2024, 228,319 vehicles were imported to Ukraine, which is 14. 2% more than last year. 71% of imported cars are used, with an average age of 9 years. The most popular brands: Volkswagen, Renault and Audi.

In July 2024, Ukraine imported 837. 8 thousand MWh of electricity, which is 2% less than in June. The largest share of imports came from Hungary (45%), followed by Poland (19%) and Romania (18%).

Turkey ratified the free trade agreement with Ukraine signed in February 2022. This is expected to increase bilateral trade from $7.3 billion to $10 billion in a short period of time.

The National Bank of Ukraine expects a further outflow of migrants abroad in 2024-2025. It is projected that the net return of migrants to Ukraine will start only in 2026 and will be gradual.

As of the end of July, 430 children were taken away from refugees from Ukraine abroad, most of them in Germany and Poland. The reasons vary from parental behavior that is unacceptable in Europe to health problems, and 65 children have already been returned.

Law enforcement officers found a house that could have been used by the suspect in the murder of Irina Farion. A number of items that may contain evidence of the crime were seized from the premises.

Head of the Verkhovna Rada Tax Committee opposes the use of individual entrepreneurs by Internet providers. The Internet Association of Ukraine asks the President for protection, urging him to stop the campaign to destroy small domestic telecom businesses.

Ukraine has repatriated the bodies of 250 fallen defenders from different frontline areas and the occupied territories. The bodies will be identified and handed over to the families for a decent burial in accordance with the Geneva Conventions.

Early grain and pulses harvesting has been completed in 5 regions of Ukraine. A total of 25.3 million tons of grains and 3.2 million tons of oilseeds were harvested, and an area of over 7.3 million hectares was threshed.

Ukrainian banks are using out-of-court restructurings and debt prolongation with a grace period to support clients with credit difficulties. These measures helped to reduce NPLs by UAH 4.2 billion over six months.

Hungary's Foreign Minister reacted sharply to the European Commission's response to oil transit. Szijjarto called it a scandal and criticized the proposal to use an alternative route through Croatia.