EU funds €2 million for new mine clearance initiative in Ukraine
Source: EU Delegation to Ukraine
The European Union is stepping up its support for Ukraine with a generous €2 million grant dedicated to a new mine clearance project.
The 16 Belgian Malinois will be the first technical survey dogs to be deployed in Ukraine. Together with their eight handlers, who are all Ukrainian women, they underwent extensive training in Cambodia for five months before returning to Ukraine.
Most of these instructors previously studied dog training at Sumy National Agrarian University. The training not only honed the dogs’ detection abilities but also equipped the instructors with skills in manual demining.
This project is funded by the European Commission’s Instrument for External Action and is being implemented in collaboration with humanitarian organizations APOPO and Mines Advisory Group (MAG), renowned for their expertise in training animals for landmine clearance.
Amendments to Ukraine’s enforcement proceedings legislation, initiated by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, have entered into force. Among other measures, the reform provides for the automated lifting of attachments on bank accounts immediately after debts in enforcement proceedings have been fully settled. The main practical benefit for citizens is the complete elimination of the need to contact an enforcement officer in person and wait for paper decisions once the debt has been paid.
The 157th Separate Mechanized Brigade has received another batch of supplies as part of Rinat Akhmetov’s Steel Front military initiative. This time, the military received seven quad bikes and four mobile shower and bath units.
In my previous column, I wrote about social innovations in Ukraine. Those innovations are part of civic resilience and the democratization of security, which Europe is paying close attention to right now. The EU is trying to work out how to spread responsibility for its own security across society as a whole, rather than leaving it to institutions alone. It is looking for concrete ways to bring ordinary people into the work of defense and resistance.
Petro Poroshenko’s lawyers have appealed to the High Anti-Corruption Court demanding that NABU be obligated to register proceedings regarding the fact of exerting influence on the court and to recognize Petro Poroshenko as a victim in the case of the Deputy Head of the Office of the President, Iryna Mudra, due to her pressure on Supreme Court judges who were considering a lawsuit to overturn sanctions.
Internationally recognized brands and financial institutions should direct capital to Ukraine now, not waiting for the hostilities to end. This was emphasized by Rinat Akhmetov, president of FC Shakhtar, during a working visit to UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, where he met with UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin.