I was in Dnipro today. A missile hit this building earlier this year. 46 people burned and evaporated.
Dnipro is close to the border and missiles can come any time without warning.
Yesterday, there was an attack and more people died.
But the city lives. 1/
Just next to the destroyed building there is a new development full of live. 2/
There is beautiful architecture and art 3/
People open and operate upscale stores, designed by Ukrainians, and giving a shockingly different vibe. 4/
The authorities put up shelters around the city so that people can get to some kind of safer if there is no warning attack. 5/
The city is clean, garbage collection is working. 6/
They appear to be playful and in good mood. But the moment you talk to them you see trauma, fear, exhausting, commitment, resilience and anger. All at once. 7/
The drinks are innovative. This is a lemonade with raspberries. 8/
Our waiter was giving attitude :))9/
I have not slept well for weeks now, but even my mood got lighten up. 10/
And the colors of the city are beautiful. 11/
Dnipro city is wonderful, and it is horrible crime what Russians are doing to it. There are good people in Dnipro, goof humans, who want to live free. Without Russia. And it will happen. 12X
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$129 million a month. That is what Russia’s steel lobby wants to remove from the budget in tax relief.
Bloomberg: Moscow faces mounting corporate rescue demands as wartime spending strains state finances. 1/
A steel industry group asks to scrap the raw steel excise and iron ore extraction tax. The move would cost about $129M per month. Profits at top steelmakers have fallen, though they remain globally profitable with low debt. 2/
The Transport Ministry seeks 65 billion rubles for Russian Railways. The state monopoly had requested 200 billion rubles in emergency aid in late 2025 to sustain operations and investment under rising costs and heavy debt. 3/
Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin: Russia’s war against Ukraine is criminal aggression, and Russians can love their country while supporting Ukraine’s defense. 1/
Buterin: Two arguments are used to justify the invasion — Russia’s right to block NATO expansion, and claims that Russian speakers in Crimea and Donbas needed protection. Neither explains launching a full-scale invasion in 2022. 2/
Buterin: NATO expanded because countries feared Russia after Moldova (1992), the two Chechen wars (1994–2000), and Georgia (2008). In 1991, 51% of Crimea and over 80% in Donbas voted for Ukrainian independence. 3/
The Moscow Times: After Russian frontline units lost access to Starlink, Ukrainian forces regained the village of Kosivtseve in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, according to a NATO official in Brussels. 1/
This month, SpaceX disconnected Starlink terminals near the front at Ukraine’s request after Kyiv reported Russian forces were using them to receive commands, coordinate assaults, and pilot drones. 2/
A senior NATO official said the cutoff placed Russian units in a “command and control predicament.”
Some Russian frontline elements had integrated Starlink into daily operations despite the service not officially operating in Russia. 3/
EU’s top court adviser says the Commission was wrong to release €10B to Hungary in Dec 2023.
If judges follow the opinion, Budapest may have to repay the money, Politico. 1/
The funds had been frozen over rule-of-law concerns.
The European Parliament argues the Commission unfroze them on the eve of a key EU summit — when leaders needed Viktor Orbán’s support on Ukraine aid. 2/
Advocate-General Tamara Ćapeta says the Commission “incorrectly” applied its own rule-of-law criteria.
She cites failures to properly assess judicial independence and Constitutional Court appointments in Hungary. 3/
Putin tightens the grip of dictatorship. Russia has erased WhatsApp from its internet.
Roskomnadzor removed the Meta-owned app — used by at least 100M Russians — from the national registry, making access nearly impossible without VPN workarounds, FT. 1/
It’s a deeper block than past slowdowns.
By Dec, WhatsApp traffic had already been throttled 70-80%. Now Moscow appears to be cutting access long-term — after labeling Meta platforms “extremist” and degrading YouTube. 2/
The push is toward Max — a state-designated “national messenger” owned by VK, linked to Putin’s inner circle.
Modeled on China’s WeChat, it combines messaging and госservices — but without encryption. 3/