President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law on virtual assets, which refers this market to the regulation of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission and the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU). According to the Telegram channel of the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine, with the start of this law, the following changes will be introduced in Ukraine:
– foreign and Ukrainian crypto exchanges will work legally;
– banks will open accounts for crypto companies;
– Ukrainians will be able to protect their savings in virtual assets;
– the state will guarantee judicial protection of rights to virtual assets.
In addition, the National Securities and Stock Market Commission will formulate and implement a policy in the field of virtual assets; determine the procedure for the turnover of virtual assets; issue authorizations to VA service providers; exercise supervision and financial monitoring in this area.
According to the Ministry of Digital Development, this is another important step towards the de-shadowing of the crypto sector and the launch of a legal market for virtual assets in Ukraine. “Since the beginning of the war, crypto assets have become a powerful tool for attracting additional funding in support of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. During the three weeks of the war, the Crypto Fund of Ukraine raised more than $54 million in crypto assets. Today, the president has signed the law on virtual assets. We are launching a legal market for virtual assets in Ukraine and bringing the crypto sector out of the shadows,” Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Mykhailo Fedorov wrote on his Telegram channel.
As of Wednesday, 26 MPs are abroad, about ten of them are members of the Ukrainian delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and the rest are members of the Opposition Platform – For Life faction, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk has said.
“As of this morning, according to the information I have, 26 MPs are abroad. But I must emphasize that about ten of them are the women deputies who were sent by me to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in order for them to defend the decision that PACE made yesterday regarding the exclusion of Russia from the Assembly,” the speaker said on the air of the 1+1 TV channel.
At the same time, he stressed that members of the Opposition Platform – For Life faction are now mostly not on working trips abroad.
“The reasons for their departure are not known. I didn’t send them on a working trip. But they are there. As for the future, they should be given political responsibility by the Ukrainian people in the next elections. But I think that it will not be limited to this either, because those who committed crimes against the Ukrainian people, who were collaborators, committed high treason, in addition to political responsibility, they will definitely incur criminal liability,” Stefanchuk specified.
Following the European Union, the Swiss authorities have announced the inclusion of an additional number of individuals and organizations in their sanctions lists in connection with the Russian operation in Ukraine. “A further 197 individuals are now subject to financial sanctions and travel restrictions and 9 additional entities are now subject to financial sanctions,” the Swiss government said in a statement.
“Switzerland’s list of sanctions now fully mirrors that of the EU,” it said.
The Russian individuals sanctioned by Switzerland include businessmen Roman Abramovich, Andrei Melnichenko, Alexander Vinokurov, Vadim Moshkovich, Dmitry Pumpyansky and his son Alexander, as well as Dmitry Mazepin and his son Nikita.
The Swiss sanctions also apply to Rostelecom president Mikhail Oseyevsky, entrepreneurs and top managers Andrei Guryev, Dmitry Konov and Mikhail Poluboyarinov, and Channel One general director Konstantin Ernst.
The Russian companies sanctioned by Switzerland are Rosneft Aero, Rosoboronexport, JSC NPO High-Precision Systems, Kurganmashzavod, JSC Russian Helicopters, the United Aircraft Corporation, the United Shipbuilding Corporation, Uralvagonzavod, and JSC Zelenodolsk Plant named after A.M. Gorky.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the EU members for completing the synchronization of the Ukrainian and European power systems.
“Ukraine has become a member of the Energy Union. The unification of Ukrainian & European energy systems has been completed. Now Ukrainian electricity flows in the EU & vice versa. Grateful to EU members, personally to Ursula von der Leyen, Kadri Simson & everyone, thanks to whom we now have a single energy system!” Zelensky said on Twitter.
ENERGY UNION, EUROPEAN POWER SYSTEMS, MEMBER, SYNCHRONIZATION, UKRAINE
More than 75,000 people crossed the state border of Ukraine to the EU and Moldova on March 15, which is about 5% more than the day before, the State Border Guard Service said on Wednesday. “The indicators show that over the past two days, passenger traffic has a tendency to slightly increase. There are no queues of pedestrians and vehicles in almost all directions. The exceptions are the Krakovets checkpoints, as well as Uzhgorod and Tysa, where there are slight accumulations of cars and buses,” the statement said.
According to it, as before, 65-69% of those who left the country in the west first cross the Ukrainian-Polish border.
At the same time, the State Border Guard Service notes a steady flow of people entering Ukraine, the number of which on March 15 amounted to 16,000, including citizens of Ukraine – more than 13,000. “The vast majority are men who are ready to defend the country. Since the beginning of open armed aggression, about 273,000 of our countrymen have returned to Ukraine,” the service said.
The State Border Guard Service recalled that all checkpoints on the western border (except Dzvinkove) operate around the clock.
It also said that over the past day, more than 800 vehicles with humanitarian cargo were registered at the western borders.
According to the UNHCR, as of 13:00 on March 15, a total of 3.06 million people have left Ukraine since the beginning of the war, of which Poland received 1.86 million, Romania and Moldova – 555,300, Hungary – 272,900, and Slovakia – 221,000.
Early data estimates suggest that 90% of the Ukrainian population could be facing poverty and extreme economic vulnerability should the war deepen, setting the country – and the region – back decades and leaving deep social and economic scars for generations to come, according to the early projection released today by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
“In the event of a continuing, protracted war in Ukraine, 18 years of socio-economic achievements could be lost, with almost one third of the population living below the poverty line and a further 62% at high risk of falling into poverty within the next twelve months, according to an early projection released today by the UNDP,” UNDP said in a press release on Wednesday.
UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said that the war in Ukraine is causing unimaginable human suffering with a tragic loss of life and the displacement of millions of people.
“While the need for immediate humanitarian assistance to Ukrainians is of the utmost importance, the acute development impacts of a protracted war are now becoming more apparent. An alarming economic decline, and the suffering and hardship it will bring to an already traumatized population must now come into sharper focus. There is still time to halt this grim trajectory,” he said.
Based on its longstanding, trusted partnership with the Government of Ukraine, UNDP has been working in all 24 regions (administrative districts) of Ukraine with more than 332 municipalities, 15 civil society organizations hubs, and more than 17 business membership associations across the country. As part of the coordinated United Nations Country Team’s response, UNDP is now leveraging this extensive network for immediate and scaled up support to the people of Ukraine, focusing on immediate crisis response and maintaining core government functions for emergency response management and public service delivery.
“In order to avoid further suffering, destruction and impoverishment we need peace now. As part of the United Nations’ unwavering commitment to the Ukrainian people, UNDP’s primary focus is to help preserve hard-won development gains. That includes supporting the government to sustain critical governance structures and services, which constitute the bedrock of all societies,” Steiner said.
UNDP said that according to government estimates, at least $100 billion worth of infrastructure, buildings, roads, bridges, hospitals, schools, and other physical assets have been destroyed. The war has caused 50% of Ukrainian businesses to shut down completely, while the other half are forced to operate well below capacity.
Among the largest UN agencies on the ground in Ukraine, UNDP has remained operational throughout the conflict and is now boosting its presence with targeted, specialized deployments in key areas such as debris management, damage assessment and emergency livelihoods including cash-based assistance, and also offering operational entry points and platforms to development and humanitarian partners to channel and scale support to the Government and people of Ukraine.
UNDP said that a series of policy measures in the coming weeks could assist and mitigate a freefall into poverty as the conflict rages on. In view of the scale of the needs and priorities, and of the country’s strong banking and financial services infrastructure, UNDP joins the UN Crisis Coordinator in promoting the use of multi-purpose cash assistance which could help reach the largest number of people in desperate need across the country.
“For example, UNDP’s initial estimates are that a large-scale emergency cash transfer operation, costing approximately $250 million per month, would cover partial income losses for 2.6 million people expected to fall into poverty. A more ambitious temporary basic income (TBI) that provides a basic income of $5.50 per day per person would cost $430 million a month, based on initial estimates,” the organization said.
