On 17–18 April, Brussels hosted a special European Council, during which the leaders of European countries discussed key issues related to EU competitiveness, the current state of the European economy, and ways to improve the efficiency of the single market. In the context of international politics, the heads of state and governments of the EU countries focused on the situation in Ukraine and increasing EU assistance in Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression. Please find below the text of the speech by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The agricultural sector is one of the most important sectors in Ukraine. It is also an extremely sensitive one in the context of international economic cooperation. Ukraine is now an EU candidate country, which means that it will have to align its land legislation and the philosophy of the land market with generally accepted European norms. Ukraine itself needs these changes for economic recovery and subsequent sustainability. The article below discusses the rules of the EU land market.

The Verkhovna Rada Committee on Ukraine’s Integration into the European Union, in coope- ration with UN Women in Ukraine, and with the support from the governments of Denmark and Sweden, held a discussion titled ‘Gender Equality in EU Integration’. The participants discussed the implementation of the best parliamentary practices of the European Union Member States. In particular, the analysis and monitoring of legislation, the implementation of the EU acquis into the legal system of Ukraine, as well as legislative initiatives aimed at achieving gender equality. EU Ambassador to Ukraine, Katarína Mathernová, participated in the discussion.

The European Council adopted a law covering EU-wide minimum rules for the prosecution of violation or circumvention of EU sanctions in Member States. Certain actions will now be considered criminal offences in all Member States – for example, helping to bypass a travel ban, trading in sanctioned goods, or performing prohibited financial activities. Inciting, aiding and abetting these offences can be penalised. The new law also applies to suppliers of cryptocurrency services and allows for asset freezing.

In 2024, the EIB will direct EUR 500 million in loans and EUR 60 million in grants to implement ongoing projects in Ukraine. The memorandum also provides for future infrastructure projects, including for local social infrastructure, like educational institutions, investments in healthcare infrastructure, and others. The EIB is also considering the possibility of increasing guarantees for businesses and additional financial instruments for the development of the private sector in Ukraine.

Over the four years of its implementation, the EU-funded EU4DigitalUA project has developed more than 50 e-services, introduced an e-signature in line with EU standards, facilitated the modernisation of ten registers, and scaled up the Trembita system. Presenting the project results, Katarína Mathernová, Ambassador of the European Union to Ukraine, said Ukraine had created “a uniquely effective e-governance system, and is effectively using digital tools to overcome the challenges caused by war”.

The Centre for Spatial Technologies (CST) has launched a website, the ‘Spatial Archive’, to research the attack on the Mariupol Drama Theatre. To create the archive, the project team collected thousands of photographs, satellite images, videos and social media posts, and recorded over a hundred hours of interviews with witnesses to the attack. “Due to the lack of direct access to the site of the tragedy and the systematic destruction of evidence by the Russian Federation, these materials are an important historical document,” the project team says.

After a recent surge of Russian attacks on Ukraine, the country’s energy grid once again teetered on the brink. Stepping in to assist the Ukrainian people, the EU delivered a powerful transformer to Ukraine from Latvia, which will bolster the damaged electricity supply for more than 500,000 Ukrainians.

The transportation of the transformer, weighing over 200 tons, required a 25-axle trailer and a special 5-axle ballast tractor. The length of this vehicle was also extraordinary, which required precise calculations of parameters and routes.

The European Union and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Ukraine have opened a new youth space, based at the Centre for Culture and Leisure in Poltava. The space will be somewhere for local youth to offer their own ideas and communicate with like-minded people to improve community wellbeing and develop volunteering. It is expected that the centre will facilitate dialogue between youth and local authorities to enhance youth inclusion in local self- governance and integrate displaced youth into the Poltava community.