Here are the main developments in Moscow and Kyiv as Friday draws to an end
According to a senior aide to the Ukrainian president, between 100 and 200 Ukrainian soldiers are killed daily on the front lines. This is more than the combat death toll that President Volodymyr Zilenskyy had previously calculated. As the battles for Ukraine’s eastern regions drag on, it’s now been a week. Despite receiving billions of dollars from U.S. military allies and European allies, Ukraine continues to claim it is outgunned and Kyiv continues its appeal for more weapons.
There are increasing concerns about the possibility of cholera spreading in Mariupol, Russia’s occupied city. According to the mayor of Mariupol, who is now based in another city, 20,000 civilians could have been killed during Russia’s occupation of the southern port city. In addition, corpses were contaminating the water wells. According to the British Defense Ministry, Mariupol’s medical services are in danger of collapse as Russia struggles with providing public services in occupied territories.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace met Zelenskyy in Kyiv and promised to continue supporting Ukraine through military and other assistance. The United Kingdom is pushing for the release two British nationals who were convicted of “mercenary activity” and sentenced by a court in Donetsk, a pro-Russian separatist region. Officials from the UK said that they are working with Kyiv in order to free the soldiers.
Russia’s central bank reduced its interest rates to prewar levels, citing slowing inflation. The bank lowered its key rate from 9.5% to reflect the fact that Russia has reverted to the 20% emergency rate increase in the wake of the war and subsequent Western sanctions. Elvira Nabiullina, Bank Governor, stated that the impact of sanctions has been less severe than expected. However she admitted that they still have not reached their full extent.
Two-thirds of the children in Ukraine were displaced by war. It is not easy to keep them safe.
McDonald’s Russia has rebranded with a new logo but its identity is kept secret.
A Russian blockade in Odesa disrupts Ukrainian farmers’ grain exports.
Russia threatens to expel U.S. journalists if the U.S. does not treat Russian media more favorably
The world is being changed by Russia’s war on Ukraine: You can see its ripple effects all around the globe.
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