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.

Ukraine buried Maksym Kryvtsov on 11 January, a poet and soldier aged 33, reportedly killed after an artillery strike on his position in the Kharkiv region. When the full-scale invasion started, he signed up to fight against Russia, and kept writing during the war, including these lines: 

“I wish to become a part of / the ordinary city again / walk a big dog / fry some eggs / drink coffee in charming bookstores with tall shelves / it's dangerous / it's very dangerous / a calm life is an illness (...) I'll turn my life around / I'll turn my life around? / I promise.” 

His tragic destiny, like many other Ukrainian artists, opens a discussion about the future of culture in Ukraine and how it is threatened. The Ukrainian article the Europe-Ukraine desk translated into English this week tackles this topic, and reflects on Ukrainian citizens’ responsibility to take part in the resistance. 

Later you can read about the latest opinion polls on EU support for Ukraine in the ongoing war: 40 percent of French respondents to a survey for Le Point say they’d rather stop or reduce support to Ukraine, while the latest Eurobarometer shows 78 percent of Spaniards support maintaining financial aid to Kyiv. According to ARD, a majority of Germans don’t see the war coming to an end in 2024. Another transnational topic this week is Ukrainian grain in the EU: 40 percent of Spain’s 2023 wheat imports come from Ukraine, and Bulgaria, Poland, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary are pushing for tariffs on Ukrainian imports to the EU. 

Worth reading are pieces on Italy’s link with pro-Russian supporters and Hungarian pro-Russian narratives spreading into Slovakia through Budapest’s government-funded press. 

Have a good read.

Sarah-Lou Lepers
Editor of this week's edition

Ukraine has started 2024 with no expectations, but bleak news reports, difficult discussions and a wave of drone and missile attacks. 

On 7 January, the poet and soldier Maksym Kryvtsov was killed at the frontline, at the age of 33. Death has already become part of daily life for Ukrainians, but this exact one touched thousands across the country. Kryvtsov's book of poetry was published just a few weeks before he was killed, and was sold out after the news of his death appeared. His publishing house announced that all the money from this and next editions of the book will be distributed between the poet's family and the needs of the army. 

Kryvtsov was only one of many people of culture who joined the armed forces. This week you can read a translation of a tough and frank conversation between journalist Yaroslav Druziuk and film producer and serviceman Volodymyr Yatsenko, about the threats to culture in Ukraine, and every Ukrainian citizen’s responsibility to defend their country. As a citizen, soldier and intellectual, Yatsenko isn't afraid to criticise the powerful and ask difficult questions to Ukrainian society, yet still have the best interests of the nation at heart:

"We need a new kind of State – one that people will find worth killing for. I don’t think the fallen [Ukrainian soldiers] fought for Ukraine as it used to be, but they fought for Ukraine as it should be."

The piece translated by n-ost this week was originally published by The Village, a Kyiv-based media focused mostly on big city life, Ukraine’s contemporary culture and fashion.

The article was translated by Tetiana Evloeva

Germany 

Majority do not see the war ending in 2024

A majority of Germans do not expect the war in Ukraine to end in 2024, according to an ARD-DeutschlandTrend poll published at the beginning of the year. 75 percent of respondents believe Ukraine should independently decide when to negotiate with Russia. Regarding German support for Ukraine with weapons, 36 percent find it excessive, 35 percent appropriate, and 21 percent insufficient. (Tagesschau) Given the understanding that the war could drag on for the next years, the mood in Germany is changing: according to another report from Focus magazine, 52 percent of Germans support the reintroduction of compulsory military service in the Bundeswehr. (Tagesspiegel)

In contrast, the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (SWB), a newly founded German party of the former Left Party (Die Linke) politician and a Bundestag member, has presented a 26-page programme framing the Russian war against Ukraine as a "violent proxy struggle" between NATO and Russia. Wagenknecht, now campaigning for the upcoming European elections, advocates for a revised EU strategy with a focus on negotiations and "an immediate halt to all arms exports to Ukraine". The programme also opposes starting EU accession talks with Ukraine, and advocates for the removal of sanctions on Russia, and the restoration of oil and gas supplies from Russia. (Welt)

The ongoing farmers' protests in Europe have become fertile ground for Russia to develop its own narrative, writes ARD fact checker Pascal Siggelkow. Pro-Russian news sites, in particular German, English, and Russian-speaking Telegram channels, are using the protests to undermine support for Ukraine. Currently, a graphic is being circulated comparing the costs of Western weapons like the Leopard tank or Marder fighting vehicle with farms. Another claim refers to the destruction of new F16 fighter jets in Ukraine, even though the promised deliveries from the Netherlands and Denmark have not yet reached Ukraine. (Tagesschau)

Bulgaria

What will be the fate of Lukoil in Bulgaria?

Russian energy giant Lukoil, owner of the only hydrocarbon refinery in Bulgaria, has continued to import Russian oil since the break-out of full scale war, thanks to a waiver granted by the EU till the end of 2024. Sofia decided to stop it prematurely at the end of March, and Lukoil's management has begun to talk about the possibility of selling its assets in Bulgaria. According to the political commentator Emiliya Milcheva on DW Bulgaria, no upheavals on the Bulgarian energy market are expected. The crucial thing, she added, is to create a truly competitive environment, replacing the de facto monopoly exercised by Lukoil until now. (DW Bulgaria)

Together with Poland, Slovakia, Romania and Hungary, Bulgaria has addressed a request to EU trade commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis asking for the introduction of tariffs on Ukrainian wheat entering the EU. They argue the import of wheat from Ukraine represents unfair competition and puts their domestic producers in crisis. According to the Bulgarian government, as reported by Dnevnik, "with growing imports from Ukraine, agricultural producers in 'front-line' EU countries are having difficulty placing their products in their traditional markets". Until mid-2024, the Bulgarian government made available around 218 million euros in subsidies to support local farmers to overcome the damage caused by Russian aggression against Ukraine. (Dnevnik)

Bulgaria intends to become a significant producer of arms and ammunition at European level by modernising its industrial capabilities. To date, Bulgarian factories have mainly produced ammunition according to Soviet standards, which were useful for the Ukrainian defence in the first phase of the full-scale invasion. Sofia defence minister Todor Tagarev now claims several Bulgarian arms companies are capable of producing to NATO standards. (24 Chasa)

Spain

Spain lags in military aid to Ukraine

The Spanish ministry of defence has published the figures of military assistance to Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion: 130 million euros in armaments, 50 million in humanitarian aid, and 250 million for reconstruction. According to The Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German think tank that monitors international support to Ukraine, last September Spain was in 19th place in terms of military support, behind smaller countries with smaller armed forces such as the Czech Republic, Latvia and Estonia. (ABC) The latest Eurobarometer published states that 78 percent of Spaniards support maintaining financial aid to Kyiv (six percent more than the EU average). (20 minutos)

Even so, this week Kyiv awarded 34 Spanish military personnel for their role in training Ukrainian recruits on Spanish soil, a topic discussed in our last newsletter. "Your work helps to save lives and to win and regain peace," the Ukrainian ambassador said to the Spanish army officials. The Spanish defence minister also issued a statement, assuring that "until the end, Spain's commitment will be total and absolute". She added that the support "for this fair cause" will continue "as long as necessary". (El Diario)

In the wake of its "worst harvest in history", Spain has increased cereal imports by 30 percent, with Ukraine playing a crucial role. Despite the challenges posed to the country by the 2023 drought, global production helped to alleviate the impact. Even amidst the Russian invasion, Ukraine maintained its position as the leading cereal supplier to Spain, surpassing France threefold. Particularly noteworthy is the twofold increase in wheat purchases compared to the previous year, with Ukrainian products now constituting a significant 40 percent of Spanish imports. (EFE)

France

"Ukraine is and will remain France's priority"

President Macron announced on 16 January that France will deliver 40 SCALP missiles to Ukraine, and hundreds of bombs. (Le Monde). A week before, new French minister of foreign affairs went to Kyiv for his first official visit abroad: "Ukraine is and will remain France's priority," he declared. Séjourné added that France and Ukraine have entered a new phase of cooperation to "strengthen Ukraine's ability to produce the weapons it needs on its own soil", with possible cooperation between the two countries’ defence companies. According to a French Parliamentary report from November, France's military aid to Ukraine will amount to 3.2 billion (Le Monde). Last week, the French ministry of defence shared that it had trained 8,000 Ukrainian military personnel in 2023. (Les Echos)

An opinion poll for the conservative weekly Le Point shows that only 20 percent of respondents believe that Ukraine can win the war launched by Russia, and 40 percent of respondents say they would rather stop or reduce support to Ukraine. 34 percent of the respondents believe that Russia will "probably win", a number that gets higher among far-right supporters: 48 percent of Marine Le Pen supporters, and 67 percent among those of Eric Zemmour. (Le Point)

Daily newspaper 20 Minutes has debunked rumours about houses allegedly owned by President Zelensky. They debunk a fake video shared in Germany that claimed that Zelensky had just bought the former Nazi chief propagandist Goebbels’ mansion near Bogensee, in Berlin land. The journalist also makes a list of all the houses and properties that Russian propaganda has tried to link with the Ukrainian president, or his family, on the French Riviera and in Egypt. These fake allegations, the article explains, have their roots in the 2021 Pandora papers revelations, according to which Zelensky had not declared financial arrangements involving tax haven-based companies. (20 Minutes)

Hungary

Is an Orbán-Zelensky meeting on the cards?

A meeting between the Hungarian and Ukrainian foreign ministers could take place on 29 January in Uzhhorod, west Ukraine, Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó announced at a press conference in Budapest. He said that if the meeting with his counterpart Dmytro Kuleba takes place, it could even pave the way for a meeting between the two countries' leaders (Hvg). Earlier, Ihor Zhovkva, deputy head of the Ukrainian Presidential Administration, already announced that Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky had invited Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán to a bilateral meeting. (Interfax)

Pro-Russian views on the war in Ukraine are spreading from the Hungarian media to Slovakia, according to an analysis. Hungary's northern neighbour has a significant Hungarian minority, so Hungarian-language newspapers are published in the country, partly financed by public aid from Hungary. The picture that might emerge in the mind of a reader who reads the media financed by the Hungarian government is that "the war in Ukraine is not a war of good and evil, but of evil and evil. The Ukrainians are demanding and nationalistic, and Zelensky is a histrionic puppet with dictatorial tendencies" the analysis says. (Napunk.sk)

"Washington expects more constructive cooperation from Hungary" in its future support of Ukraine, assistant secretary of State for European and Eurasian affairs James O'Brien told the Hungarian daily newspaper Népszava. According to the article, "Washington's patience with Hungary is apparently running out" since "the pro-Russian stance of a NATO member state and the obstruction of the alliance's expansion is a security risk for NATO". (Népszava)

Italy

Pro-Russian events in Italy result of long-term cultural links

European countries are short of heavy ammunition, and a severe increase in production, both national and European, would not be enough, explains a piece by Domani. The EU has been supporting Kyiv, but after two years "there is still no solution to one of the most pressing problems", which is the acceleration of arms manufacture. The Ukrainian army uses from 6,000 to 8,000 pieces of artillery per day, the journalist reports, while the Russians exhaust 20,000. The US produces less than 15,000 per month. Added to this is the lack of raw materials, and the fact that changing the countries' arsenal to more conventional weaponry, which is used in the current war would have political consequences. The EU arms industry - including three Italian companies - has increased manufacturing, but cannot fulfil expectations. (Domani)

The centre-left Democratic Party instructed its MPs to vote last week in favour of the extension of military support of Ukraine for one more year. But, as Il Post pieces together, some parliamentarians disregarded the mandate, and voted against the decision. Party secretary Elly Schlein followed in the footsteps of her predecessor by supporting the weapons supply, but she put less emphasis on a military solution, and called on the need to promote a diplomatic initiative for a peaceful resolution of the war. (Il Post)

Historian Giovanni Savino clarifies that the current events promoted by pro-Russian groups in different Italian cities are not directly organised by the Kremlin, but are the result of "several connections - some of them dating back to the Soviet Union - between associations, magazines and personalities belonging to the neo-fascist world and the Russian extreme-right movements". Among them is a long-standing relationship between Aleksandr Dugin, the pro-Putin Russian philosopher, and the Lega party, which is part of the ruling majority. (Valigia Blu)

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

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