Kallas expects positive decisions on €90 billion EU loan for Ukraine

The European Union signalled fresh financial backing for Ukraine, with foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas saying she expects “positive decisions” tomorrow on a €90 billion loan package.

“We expect some positive decisions tomorrow on the €90bn loan,” she said ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, where ministers are also set to hear a renewed call to suspend trade relations with Israel.

“Ukraine really needs this loan and it’s also a sign that Russia cannot outlast Ukraine,” Ms Kallas said.

Her remarks came as Russian strikes hit several parts of Ukraine overnight, wounding more than a dozen people in at least four regions, according to officials.

Images released by emergency services showed rescue crews battling car fires in the dark and helping residents flee damaged buildings.

“Due to the threat of repeated attacks, rescuers had to suspend their operations several times and move to a safe location,” the emergency service said.

Officials said aerial attacks wounded three people in the northeastern Kharkiv region and another three in the eastern city of Sloviansk.

In the Dnipropetrovsk region, the governor said on social media that four more people were wounded.

Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched two missiles and 143 drones in the assault, adding that air defence units intercepted one missile and 116 drones.

Russia had hoped its invasion would swiftly bring down Ukraine’s leadership, but more than four years later the war has become Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II, killing hundreds of thousands on both sides and forcing millions from their homes.

Russia has taken 1,700 square km of Ukraine this year, general says

Russia gains appeared to have slowed this year

Russia’s top general said Moscow’s forces have captured 1,700 square km (656 square miles) of territory in Ukraine this year and are pressing toward the so-called fortress belt in Donbas as he inspected troops.

Since launching its 2022 invasion, Russia has sought to seize the whole of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, where Kyiv’s troops have gradually been pushed back toward a line of cities after months of attritional fighting.

Kyiv, however, has also reported gains in the deadliest war in Europe since World War Two. In mid-April, top Ukrainian commander Oleksandr Syrskyi said Kyiv’s forces had retaken nearly 50 sq km of territory in March.

“Since the beginning of this year, a total of 80 settlements and more than 1,700 square kilometres of territory have come under our control,” Valery Gerasimov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, said in footage released by the defence ministry on Tuesday.

Reuters was unable to verify the battlefield accounts, and the general staff of the Ukrainian armed forces did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Pro-Ukrainian maps indicate Russia has taken 592 square km this year.

Swedish intelligence says Russia manipulates economic data

Sweden’s military intelligence said late yesterday that Russia was “manipulating” financial data to conceal the true condition of its economy while still pursuing its political and strategic goals.

In a statement, Sweden’s Military Intelligence and Security Service (MUST) said that although official Russian figures pointed to falling GDP and weak industrial production, the country was “manipulating economic data in order to appear more resilient than it really is.”

The agency said Russia was likely facing “higher inflation and a larger budget deficit” than it has acknowledged publicly.

“Despite the recent period of high oil prices, which has provided Russia with increased revenues, it would take a price of over $100 per barrel for an entire year to remedy the Russian budget deficit,” MUST said.

“The weak economy does not affect the strategic objectives,” Thomas Nilsson, head of MUST, said.

The intelligence service said Russia remained committed to prosecuting the war in Ukraine and carrying out “hybrid” activities in EU and NATO countries.

“It is a political decision, not an economic one. However, the economic constraints and sanctions do affect what kind of military capabilities Russia can muster, and how quickly this can be done,” Mr Nilsson said.