The European Commission's chief spokesperson, Paola Pinho, stated that the European Union continues to coordinate with the United States on the introduction of anti-Russian sanctions, including against the consortium operating the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, in the event that Russia does not begin a ceasefire within the previously agreed timeframe.
At the EU Economic and Financial Affairs Council meeting on May 13 in Brussels, the economy and finance ministers of EU member states will hear an expert report on how Russia’s war economy is financed, in order to better shape punitive financial and economic sanctions against the Russian Federation during the preparation of the 17th sanctions package.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that the fire at the Marywilska 44 shopping center in Warsaw was the result of deliberate arson orchestrated by Russian intelligence services:
“It is now reliably known that the major fire at the Marywilska shopping center in Warsaw was caused by arson commissioned by Russian intelligence. Some of the perpetrators have already been detained, and the rest have been identified and are being sought. We will find all of you!”
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski announced the closure of the Russian consulate general in Kraków due to evidence of Russian intelligence involvement in the sabotage act at the shopping center in Warsaw on May 12, 2024.
Norbert Röttgen, a Bundestag MP from Germany’s ruling CDU party, believes that European NATO countries must accelerate the strengthening of their defense capabilities, as Russia may launch an attack sooner than current official statements suggest.
Russia’s Kemerovo region accounted for 10.3% of the overall “hole” in the budgets of deficit regions. Last year, the deficit reached 70.6 billion rubles, or 24% of expenditures. Now, due to an even deeper crisis in the coal sector, Kuzbass is forced to borrow 14 billion rubles to finance its regional budget deficit and repay debts—borrowing from VTB at an annual rate of 23.4%, and from Sberbank at 23.7–24.1%.
Russia’s Voronezh region is on the verge of declaring a regional state of emergency due to the loss of crops across more than 30,000 hectares, with winter crops and sugar beets suffering the most damage. Additionally, the total area of orchards and berry plantations damaged by frost exceeds 2,600 hectares, or 44% of the region’s total.
Import substitution, Russian style: in March 2025, Russia purchased a record shipment of strawberries from China worth $3.4 million. This figure is twice the volume imported in February of this year and in March of last year.
This week, the Russian State Duma plans to tighten administrative responsibility for citizens who have left the country and act “against the interests” of Russia. The draft law proposes allowing trials in absentia for such individuals and the seizure of their property in Russia.
Unable to afford new cars, Russians are increasingly buying used ones. In the first four months of 2025, they purchased 1,861,282 used vehicles. In April alone, such purchases increased by 13%. Only 30% of all re-registrations involved Russian-made used cars.
Frequent absenteeism and unauthorized departures from workplaces in Russia have been described by lawmakers as egregious. In response, the Russian Ministry of Economic Development has prepared a package of amendments to labor legislation that would allow employers to dismiss an employee for being absent from the workplace for more than four hours without a valid reason.
In April, annual inflation in Belarus accelerated to 6.5%, with monthly inflation reaching 1% compared to March. Food prices rose the most in April—by an average of 1.4% compared to March and 8.3% year-on-year. Non-food items became 0.7% more expensive over the month and 3.6% over the year. Prices for services rose by 0.5% from March and by 7% compared to April last year.
The share of the IT sector in the Belarusian economy has decreased by almost half over the past four years. As of the end of 2024, the “information and communications” sector, which includes IT, accounted for 4.9% of the economy, down from 7.3% in 2020.
The Belarusian government plans to reduce subsidies in the housing and public utilities sector and transportation. This means higher tariffs for utilities and increased public transportation costs.
The Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs has added the Belarusian Social Democratic Party "Hramada" to its list of “extremist formations.”
