Welcome to this edition of What about Ukraine?, a newsletter that helps you keep updated about what has been said recently about Ukraine in Ukraine, and in the international media.

Since the Russian full-scale invasion, many Ukrainian athletes have been forced to move to other countries to train. High-jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh, awarded Female field athlete of the year 2024 at the World Athletics Awards 2024, after breaking the world record and winning Olympic Gold in Paris, had to relocate to Belgium to pursue her sports career. In the article of the week, published in Champion and translated by n-ost, the reporter spent a day with Mahuchikh during her visit to her hometown Dnipro. The olympian has consistently used her exposure to speak up about Russian aggression to her country, and reaffirm how 500 Ukrainian athletes have been killed since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. 

In the EU, focus on the political, economic and military support to Ukraine stays high in the media. While German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock’s proposal to deploy Bundeswehr soldiers to secure a Ukraine ceasefire caused mixed reactions, in Bulgaria, president Rumen Radev - attending the opening ceremony of the restored Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris - called for negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv. Hungarian prime minister, Viktor Orbán, defined a recent phone call with Vladimir Putin as part of a "peace mission". But later statements suggested that, since Hungary buys gas from Russia, the discussion focused on US sanctions on Gazprombank preventing Budapest’s payments for energy.

Despite promises by the Italian government to finance the reconstruction of the Ukrainian city Odesa and its cathedral, only a paltry amount of money has been delivered, reportedly because of bureaucratic delays. Lastly, desertion remains a significant challenge for Kyiv’s army, even among soldiers undergoing training abroad. Diario de Cádiz reports that two Ukrainian soldiers are currently wanted after fleeing a military base in southern Spain.

Have a good read!

Marika Ikonomu
Editor of this week's edition

This December, Ukrainian high jumper Yaroslava Mahuchikh was recognised as a Female field athlete of the year at the World Athletics Awards 2024. Last summer, she broke a 37-year-old world record for high-jump and won the Olympic gold. Yaroslava donated a significant part of her prize money to the Ukrainian armed forces and a foundation taking care of animals suffering because of the war.

For a report translated by n-ost this week, journalist Alla Vaskovska spent a day with the champion in her hometown Dnipro. She discovered that even in the off-season, Mahuchikh’s schedule is packed. Still, she finds the opportunity to spend time with her relatives, whom she doesn’t see often. To train without any obstacle, Mahuchikh moved to Belgium a few months after Russia had started its full-fledged invasion. 

Mahuchikh uses each of her victories to speak out about her home country. For instance, after delivering the best results this summer, she reminded the international community that since 24 February 2022 more than 500 Ukrainian athletes have been killed by Russians. Also, more than 500 sports facilities have been ruined during Russia’s air attacks over the same period. The high jumper shared:

"Before jumping the bar at 210 (cm) [a world record], I thought: if I make it, what a celebration would Ukraine have! However, my joy was short-lived, as, on the very next day, the Russians bombed the Okhmatdyt, a children’s hospital in Kyiv. Sadly, this is how we live our lives, alternating accomplishments and tragedies."

This piece was originally published by Champion, a sports publication by Ukrainska Pravda, Ukraine’s most popular and influential online media.

Translated by Tetiana Evloeva.

Bulgaria

President Radev calls for diplomatic solution to Russian invasion

"We discussed the war in Ukraine with president [elect] Trump and the possibilities of ending this through diplomatic channels," said Bulgarian president Rumen Radev at the opening ceremony of the restored Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, where he met with many political representatives invited by French president Emmanuel Macron. "The meetings with Trump, Macron and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky have rekindled hope that, albeit belatedly, diplomacy will be recognised as the main instrument for resolving the conflict in Ukraine," said Radev, who has long supported negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv and is often accused by his opponents of pro-Russian positions. (Darik Radio)

Disinformation narratives make those in Bulgaria less sensitive to the difficulties faced by Ukrainian women who have fled the war. This was the central message that emerged from a conference on disinformation and violence against women organised by the Center for Studies on Democracy in Sofia at the end of November. Since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion, according to data from the Ukrainian embassy in Sofia, more than 61,000 Ukrainian citizens are currently residing in Bulgaria with temporary protection status, the vast majority of them women and minors. According to a study by the centre, Ukrainian refugee women are often the victims of stereotyped representation in the Bulgarian media. (Bulgarian Telegraph Agency)

Bulgarian foreign minister Ivan Kondov reiterated Bulgaria's full support for Kyiv in the war against Russian aggression, at the OSCE General Assembly in Malta on 5 December. The meeting was marked by the controversial arrival of Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov on his first visit to an EU country since February 2022, whose speech was boycotted by several European representatives. For Kondov, Bulgaria and the OSCE must focus on how to help Ukraine become more resilient and rebuild after the war. (Actualno)

Germany 

Could the German military be deployed in Ukraine? 

German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock’s proposal to deploy Bundeswehr soldiers to secure a Ukraine ceasefire has sparked strong debate, reports Spiegel. At the NATO meeting in Brussels, Baerbock stated Germany would "support anything that serves peace in the future with all its strength," triggering a mixed reaction from German politicians. While Conservative Party (CDU)’s Roderich Kiesewetter argued that "excluding options prematurely" was irresponsible, social-democrat (SPD) Ralf Stegner cautioned against "casually introducing German troops into the discussion." The chancellor, Olaf Scholz, dismissed the discussion altogether, labelling it "completely inappropriate" given the ongoing conflict. (Spiegel)

With Angela Merkel's newly released memoir under discussion globally, FAZ reflects on her Russia policy, which was marked by geopolitical realism but also critical misjudgments. Her reluctance to support Ukraine and Georgia's NATO aspirations is criticised as an acceptance of Russian dominance, resembling a "revival of the Brezhnev Doctrine." The continued backing of Russian-German pipeline Nord Stream 2, even after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, is described as naive: "to believe that Nord Stream 2 was primarily economically motivated on the Russian side would be the height of naivety", the writer states. Furthermore, Merkel's refusal to provide weapons to Ukraine is framed as a significant failure, leaving the country exposed to Russian aggression, a decision whose consequences Ukrainians "are still paying dearly for today." (FAZ)

One week after chancellor Olaf Scholz went to Kyiv, CDU chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz also arrived for a visit on 9 December. Meeting with President Zelensky, Merz said Germany could support Ukraine with Taurus missiles (a move Scholz has not allowed) and offered his stance on Ukraine’s self-defence, stating: "We must do everything to enable Ukraine to exercise its right to self-defence without restrictions and end this war as quickly as possible." Merz proposed establishing a European contact group to better coordinate support for Ukraine, stressing that "Europe needs a joint strategy, not one that any single state can develop alone." (Zeit)

Hungary

Multi-million business in Hungary for a sanctioned Belarusian

A Belarusian businessman, Viktor Chevtsov, who is under EU sanctions as a beneficiary of the Lukashenko regime, owned a lucrative business in Hungary. According to an investigation by Átlátszló, in cooperation with the Belarusian Investigative Center, the businessman registered a company in Hungary, reporting hundreds of thousands of euros in revenue over several years, without any visible activity. The company was closed down by the Hungarian tax authorities only earlier this year. (Átlátszó)

A former public service employee reported shortcomings in the care of disadvantaged Roma refugees from Ukraine, hosted in shelters in Budapest. Benjamin Dániel Rézmüves reported the situation to the pro-government newspaper Magyar Nemzet, arguing that the capital’s authorities are "keeping the refugees in a ghetto". "There are three or four toilets for 100 people," he said. Deputy mayor, Ambus Kiss, commented that accommodation is still offered for refugees by the capital, despite the fact that the government funding had stopped. "Obviously, this is a mass shelter, it was designed for that purpose," he added. (Magyar Nemzet)

Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán spent an hour on the phone with Vladimir Putin on 11 December. Orbán explained the meeting was part of his "peace mission", which aims to "promote a ceasefire and peace in Ukraine". A later statement by foreign minister Péter Szijjártó suggested that the US sanctions on Russia’s Gazprombank were an important topic of the discussion. The US decision makes it impossible for European banks to carry out transfers with Gazprombank, so Hungary, which buys gas from Russia, is unable to make payments. Hvg says that the government may be "stepping on even thinner ice than before" if it wants to resolve the situation by opposing the US sanctions. (Hvg)

Italy

Italy’s promises unfulfilled in Odesa reconstruction 

In Odesa, Sunday Mass is held underground in a chapel beneath the ruined Orthodox cathedral, which was heavily damaged by a Russian missile attack in July 2023. Italian PM Giorgia Meloni defined the bombing as "an attack to the heart" and promised "workers and resources" to rebuild it. Italy’s promises remained unfulfilled, an investigation in Domani reveals, with only 70,000 euros of the pledged 500,000 euros delivered due to bureaucratic delays. Last June Italy formalised its support for the reconstruction of the entire city, promising broader investments, up to 45 million euros, but no projects have yet begun. In the meantime, other Western countries have already allocated hundreds of millions of euros in Chernihiv or Mykolaiv. (Domani)

Restorer Alessandro Cini, owner of a small conservation company in Pavia, northern Italy, travelled as a volunteer to Ukraine to secure two works by the street artist Banksy and others by the French artist Christian Guémy, known as C215. Cini worked with two Italian colleagues among the rubble of the gutted buildings to rescue the artwork in Borodyanka, near Kyiv. This experience has been recounted in the recent book ‘Fixing Banksy’. "Saving artistic heritage also means preserving the identity of the community," Cini says in an interview. (La Stampa)

In Ukraine, war tourism is growing, with agencies offering guided visits to destroyed sites, such as Irpin and Bucha. Tourists are mostly US and German citizens, aged between 30 and 40, but also a few Italians have taken part in these initiatives, worth from 150 to 3,000 euros, La Repubblica explains. Luca, for example, while working on a humanitarian project in Ukraine, explored war-torn areas with a friend. Another Italian booked the visit on TripAdvisor. While some locals criticise the commercialisation of tragedy and raise ethical concerns, others consider it a way to preserve the memory of Ukrainians’ resilience. (Repubblica)

Spain

Ukrainian defectors on the run in southern Spain 

Sixty-eight percent of Spaniards support continuing aid to Ukraine "to prevent Russia from winning the war," according to a social survey commissioned by El Periódico. This support includes backing economic sanctions and is widespread across the political spectrum, although it decreases among the far left, the far right, and the leftist Catalan independence supporters. Only 18.7 percent of respondents oppose Madrid’s support, with younger generations and those over 60 standing out as the most supportive demographics. (El Periódico)

Two Ukrainian soldiers are currently wanted in Spain after fleeing their military training facility in the south of the country. They took advantage of their stay, intended for military instruction, to escape. Days earlier, another recruit travelled 50 km through several coastal cities before regretting his decision and returning to the training base, where troops are instructed before deployment to the front. Desertion remains a significant challenge for Kyiv’s armed forces. In late November, Ukraine introduced a law allowing deserters to rejoin without punishment, resulting in the return of approximately 6,000 soldiers. (Diario de Cádiz)

Ukraine is bracing for the harshest winter of the invasion. In Diario de Ucrania, the spotlight is on the energy system, already 70 percent destroyed, and the struggles of Ukrainians grappling with its collapse. With limited energy capacity, many areas face power outages, heating system failures, and broken water pumps. "It seems that Putin’s goal is to destroy the energy infrastructure before the New Year," explains Olena Pavlenko, president and co-founder of the Ukrainian think tank DiXi Group and the Ukrainian Energy website. (RTVE)

The Europe-Ukraine Desk curated this newsletter. This week's edition has been composed by our team from all over Europe: Marika Ikonomu, Kornelia Kiss, Katarina Kukla, Oksana Mamchenkova, Francesco Martino, Antonina Rybka and Fermin Torrano.
Michael Bird was our proofreader. 

If you like this content, please spread the word, so that anyone interested in Ukraine can benefit from this weekly curation.

Have you spotted an interesting piece of journalism you think should be mentioned in What about Ukraine? Please let us know at about.ua@n-ost.org! Same if you have an idea how to improve this newsletter. 

See you next week!