Financial aid from Japan, bombing of "official" from occupied Luhansk Oblast: highlights for April 1

Help from Japan

Ukraine received $118 million in non-refundable financial assistance under World Bank programs.

Of the $118 million, $70 million will be used to support the state budget as reimbursement for expenditures under the medical guarantee program. The remaining $48.2 million will be used to reimburse homeowners in need of minor and medium repairs.

Destruction of Kharkiv's infrastructure

The Russians have destroyed the entire critical energy infrastructure of Kharkiv with missile and drone strikes. Currently, 150,000 residents of the city are without electricity.

At the same time, despite Russia's missile attacks and the difficult energy situation, neither the local authorities nor the military see any reason to evacuate Kharkiv residents. $10 billion will be needed to rebuild the city, said the mayor.

Bombing of an "official" from occupied Luhansk Oblast

A car carrying a so-called "administration official" Valeriy Chaika exploded in the temporarily occupied Starobilsk, Luhansk Oblast. He was killed in the explosion. In 2023, the Security Service of Ukraine announced that Chaika was suspected of collaboration. He faced up to 15 years in prison.

Ukrainian drones cover more than 1,000 km

Ukraine produces unmanned aerial vehicles that can cover more than 1,000 kilometers. Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov noted that Ukraine has increased the production of long-range drones tenfold compared to last year.

"Most of the drones used [to strike Russian oil refineries] have a range of 700 to 1,000 kilometers. But now there are models that can fly over 1,000 kilometers," the minister said.

Possible changes to the US bill on assistance to Ukraine

Mike Johnson, the speaker of the lower house of the US Congress, said that the bill providing for the allocation of aid to Ukraine could be amended. For example, the funds may be provided on a loan basis.

He assured that he plans to introduce a bill to allocate funding for other countries, including Ukraine, after the House of Representatives returns from Easter recess.

Other news

• The SBU has indicted Russian propagandist Margarita Simonyan.
• Civil servants filed more than 664,000 declarations for 2023. This is less than in previous reporting years.
• In April, the Ministry of Health will start repeated inspections of the military medical commissions to monitor the implementation of recommendations, said the deputy minister.
• Havana Syndrome: Russia may have attacked US national security officials using unknown weapons – CBS News.