June 21, 2023 - Russia-Ukraine news
More than 400 global companies pledged support Wednesday for rebuilding the war-torn economy at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London. Citi, Sanofi and Philips are among firms that have signed up to the Ukraine Business Compact, signaling their intent to boost investment in the country.
Ukraine faces an enormous fundraising challenge, and it’s one that governments and development finance institutions won’t be able to meet without help from private investors. The World Bank estimated in March that the cost of rebuilding the country one year on from the start of the war amounted to $411 billion — a huge figure that is set to increase as the conflict drags on.
If you're just now catching up, here's what you should know:
Attacks. Russia claimed Wednesday that its forces had attacked units of the Ukrainian army in the area of the Vremivka ledge – one of the epicenters of fighting, located in the southeast of the country near the border of the Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions – and destroyed their equipment. Meanwhile, heavy fighting continues in the eastern Donetsk region as Russian forces keep their focus in the areas of Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Mariinka, according to an earlier update from the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
Sanctions. European Union ambassadors have agreed on the 11th package of sanctions against Russia, the Swedish Presidency of the EU Council said Wednesday.
Dam collapse latest. Mines displaced by flooding after the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka dam could end up on beaches around the Black Sea, the head of a United Nations mine program said on Wednesday.
Military equipment. Russia will boost the mass production of drones and increase their deployment to the battlefield, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday, during an address to graduates from Russia's military academies in the Kremlin. Russia will also continue improving its armed forces based on the "invaluable" experience gained in its "special military operation" — a term Russian officials and leaders use to refer to the invasion — in Ukraine, Putin said Wednesday.
Zaporizhzhia developments. The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) in Ukraine will use multiple different water sources — which have sufficient water for some months — for cooling after the collapse of the Nova Kakhovka dam earlier this month, the UN's nuclear watchdog said in an update.
Black Sea grain deal. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba met with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, on Wednesday on the sidelines of the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London. They discussed "a wide range of areas where Ukraine and Türkiye can advance bilateral cooperation," Kuleba said in a tweet. The Black Sea Initiative agreement is up for renewal on July 17.
Source: CNN
