€50 million: Australia to provide aid for Ukraine’s reconstruction and energy sector
Australia will donate €50 million to the European Bank for the reconstruction and development of Ukraine.
This was announced by the head of the Australian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Penny Wong, during her visit to Kyiv.
This contribution will help Ukraine access additional loans of about $400 million over the next 10 years for post-war reconstruction. Australia will also provide $6.39 million to support Ukraine’s energy sector.
€4.1 billion: Ukraine has received funds under the Ukraine Facility program
Ukraine has received the second tranche of the Ukraine Facility program – €4.1 billion.
This was announced by Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal.
We are grateful to the European Union for its unwavering support of Ukraine, which is of great importance for strengthening the country’s economic stability and transformation on the path to full EU membership, – Denys Shmyhal said.
The money will be used to support Ukraine’s macro-financial stability and the functioning of the state in the period of 2024-2027. This year, Ukraine received €16.1 billion under this program.
€52 thousand: Smuggling of Dubai chocolate is on the rise in Europe
In recent months, customs officers have twice detained smugglers of Dubai chocolate on the Austrian border, with a total value of approximately €52,000. Such cases are becoming more frequent throughout Europe. The European Correspondent writes about it.
In October 2024, a truck with undeclared chocolate was detained on the Austrian-Hungarian border, and again in November. Then, 2,540 packages of chocolate were seized, each weighing 250 grams – the value of the batch was estimated at €52,000. That is, 100 grams of such chocolate costs €10, but in stores it is often sold for even more.
The likely reason for the high demand is its popularity on social media. Dubai chocolate has become a trend on TikTok, which is why people spent hours in line at stores or checking for its availability in online stores.
14 dead and hundreds injured: the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Vanuatu
The devastating earthquake that struck the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu on December 17 killed 14 people and injured at least 200. This is reported by the BBC.
Rescuers in the Vanuatu capital of Port Vila are trying to get people out from under the rubble of destroyed buildings. A state of emergency was declared there for 7 days to restrict the movement of people during rescue operations.
At least 10 buildings in Port Vila have been severely damaged. Among them is the building housing the embassies of the United States, Great Britain, France, and New Zealand. The earthquake also caused a power outage and a mobile phone blackout in Port Vila, making it difficult to search for people.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs estimates that approximately 116,000 people may be affected by the earthquake. Although the outskirts of Vanuatu were almost unaffected, as were most people living outside the capital.
Oscar 2025: two films about the war in Ukraine are shortlisted for the award
The Ukrainian documentary “The Porcelain War”, directed by Brendan Bellom and Slava Leontiev, has been shortlisted for an Academy Award by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The work was nominated in the Documentary Feature Film category.
And “Once Upon a Time in Ukraine”, directed by Betsy West and Earl Mack, was shortlisted in the Documentary Short Film category. The film was co-produced by Ukraine and the United States.
The Oscar nominees will be announced on January 17, 2025. Academy members will vote for the winners of the nominations from February 11 to 18, 2025.
€251 million: Meta fined for leaking Facebook user data
The European Union has imposed fines totaling €251 million on Facebook owner Meta following an investigation into a 2018 data breach on the social network that exposed millions of accounts, Euronews reports.
The Irish-based Data Protection Commission imposed the fines after completing an investigation into a data breach in which hackers gained access to user accounts by exploiting errors in the platform’s code, allowing them to steal digital keys known as “access tokens.”
The supervisory authority issued reprimands and “administrative fines” worth 251 million euros after it found numerous violations of the General Data Protection Regulation.
Meta said it would appeal the decision.
100 thousand troops: Russia has increased the number of its troops in Ukraine this year – Syrskyi
The number of Russian troops in Ukraine is constantly growing. According to Kyiv’s estimates, this year alone, it is about 100,000 additional troops.
This was reported by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi, in an interview with Le Monde.
The general believes that “the intensity of the war continues to grow both in terms of scale and number of troops.” He also emphasized the growth of the technological level with the use of drones, which has affected the tactics of using troops on the battlefield.
