August 18, 2015

08/17/2015 Ukraine: Daily Highlights -The checkpoints to the occupied territory of the Donbass are closing due to shellings

The checkpoints to the occupied territory of the Donbass are closing due to shellings
The checkpoints to the occupied territory of the Donbass are closing due to shellings

08.17.2015 Daily Highlights by the Digests & Analytics Ukraine News Agency

Topics from Media and Social Networks

  • The checkpoints to the occupied territory of the Donbass are closing due to shellings.
  • Shelling of Mariupol is qualified as a terrorist attack.
  • Foreign Ministry protested against President Putin’s visit to the occupied Crimea .

Key Events in Ukraine

  • Prime Minister Yatsenyuk instructed the Head of State Fiscal Service Nasirov to take the urgent measures to settle tax debts to the budget, which exceed UAH 53 billion (over $ 2 billion).
  • The National Anti-Corruption Bureau is to publish a list of its detectives next week.
  • During the last week, Naftogaz increased the reverse natural gas purchases from Slovakia to 33 million m3 per day.
  • Over the last six months, a turnover of retail trade in Ukraine decreased by almost a quarter.
  • The NBU introduced a decree, according to which the banks can return deposits ahead of schedule only if they are returned according to the concluded “agreement of return on demand”.
  • The National Bank continues to gradually decrease the official hryvnia exchange rate: 22.02 UAH/USD (+0.26 UAH), 24.44 UAH/EUR (+0,14 UAH), 3.36 UAH/RUR 10 (+0.01 UAH) .

Ukraine at War

  • The situation in the Donbass remains tense. During the fighting, two soldiers were killed, seven were injured. There are constant fights in the area of Donetsk, the militants are shelling the positions of Ukrainian troops and settlements along all the demarcation line . Ukrainian Army was authorized to return the artillery fire.
  • The General Prosecutor's Office qualified the shelling of Mariupol by militants as a terrorist act.
  • The Ministry of Social Policy reported on the number of registered displaced persons, which is exceeding 1.4 million. According to experts, this figure could be even bigger, despite the fact that some of the registered migrants returned to the occupied territory due to the inability to find a job and pay for accommodation at the new place of residence.
  • Due to continuous shellings, one of the transport corridors to the occupied territory was closed. The NSDC informs of possible closing of other corridors if the situation deteriorates.
  • Defense Minister Poltorak informed about the end of the sixth wave of partial mobilization. Earlier, his Deputy, Mehed said that the recruitment plan during this wave was fulfilled only by 50%.
    During the checks several military commissars were arrested for misconduct regarding filling of the certificates of unfitness for military service in exchange for bribes.

Ukraine and the World


  • The Foreign Ministry sent a note to the Russian leadership regarding the visits to the Crimea of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Medvedev and other Russian officials and demanded to urgently stop the escalation of hostilities in the Donbass.
  • According to Head of the Mejlis Chubarov, Putin intends to bargain with the West over the Crimea in exchange for a withdrawal of Russian troops from the Donbass.
  • Russian President Assistant Belousov said that currently Russia does not have foreign exchange reserves, which can be used to support the ruble. The only means of influence of the Central Bank on the ruble is the key rate.
  • UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is seriously concerned about the escalation of violence in the east of Ukraine, which led to the deaths of civilians on both sides of the demarcation line. He called  to immediately continue the dialogue on a peaceful settlement of the situation by following the letter and spirit of the Minsk agreement, including the withdrawal of the heavy equipment from the combat zone.
  • Vice-President of the European Parliament Czarnecki considers the disconnection of Russia from the SWIFT international banking system possible in the event of further escalation of the situation in the Donbass. According to him, there are no reasons for the lifting of sanctions against Russia under the  conditions of continuing aggression and occupation of the Crimea, although Russian lobby is strong in the West. The Ukrainian authorities, which are not carrying out reforms, are bringing grist to the mill of Putin.
  • The US placed the responsibility for attacks on the outskirts of Mariupol, as a result of which several civilians were killed, on Russia and the  terrorists supported by it.
  • Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said that Russia is ready to hold a meeting in the “Normandy format” to discuss changes to the Constitution of Ukraine, taking into account the implementation by Ukraine of the Minsk Agreement on granting a special status to separate areas of the Donbass.

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