According to Relocation, the Estonian government has approved a bill prohibiting citizens of Russia and Belarus from purchasing real estate if they do not have long-term resident status or the right of permanent residence in the country. If the bill is passed by parliament (the Riigikogu), the new rules will take effect on January 1, 2027.
The ban will apply throughout Estonia and will affect not only individuals but also companies from Russia and Belarus, as well as legal entities from other countries if their ultimate beneficial owner falls under the restrictions. The ban will cover apartments, land plots, building rights, and shares in real estate properties.
Tallinn cites national security concerns as the rationale for this initiative. The goal of the bill is to reduce the risks of real estate being used for intelligence activities, preparing sabotage operations, exerting influence, or establishing strongholds near strategic facilities. Interior Minister Igor Taro stated that the ban must not remain merely “on paper” and must not allow the restrictions to be circumvented through companies in Estonia or other EU countries.
However, the law will not be retroactive. Russians and Belarusians who already own real estate in Estonia will retain their property rights. Renting residential and commercial properties will also remain permitted. In certain cases, the government may issue a special permit for a purchase if the transaction does not conflict with the law’s objectives.
According to data from the Estonian Ministry of the Interior, as of January 9, 2026, there were 7,797 Russian citizens and 1,476 Belarusian citizens in the country with temporary residence permits—a total of 9,273 people. It is this group, if they do not have long-term resident status or permanent residence rights, that may be directly affected by the ban. At the same time, 70,237 Russian citizens and 1,190 Belarusian citizens held long-term residence permits and are to be exempt from the restrictions.
There is another aspect to consider—existing property owners. As of April 2025, there were 36,952 Russian citizens and 896 Belarusian citizens among real estate owners in Estonia. However, their current properties will not be seized, so the ban primarily concerns new transactions.
Ukrainian energy officials, together with European partners, have already inspected eight decommissioned combined heat and power plants in Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Austria, Croatia, and the Netherlands with the aim of potentially supplying the surplus equipment to Ukraine, said Denys Shmyhal, Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister for Energy.
According to him, equipment from European power facilities is already being used to strengthen the resilience of Ukraine’s power grid. The Ministry of Energy has carried out 199 shipments of equipment, which is now in operation at energy facilities in the Vinnytsia, Kyiv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Khmelnytskyi, Rivne, Dnipropetrovsk, and other regions.
Lithuania has made the largest contribution to this effort. Through the Lithuanian energy company AB Ignitis Gamyba, Ukraine received 152 shipments of equipment. Another 41 shipments were delivered to Ukraine thanks to cooperation with the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant.
Germany is also providing support to Ukraine. Thanks to RWE Power AG, six shipments of equipment were delivered as part of the first phase of cooperation to companies in central and western Ukraine, Kyiv, and Kharkiv.
A separate initiative is currently underway with Latvia. According to Shmyhal, Ukraine is actively working to relocate equipment from the Riga CHPP-2.
“The facilities of interest to Ukrainian companies have already been identified. The amount and source of funds required to dismantle the relevant equipment have also been determined,” the First Deputy Prime Minister said.
For Ukraine, the supply of equipment from European thermal power plants is of critical importance amid Russia’s ongoing attacks on energy infrastructure. This involves not only replacing damaged components but also creating an additional reserve for the heating season, restoring generation and distribution capacity, and enhancing the resilience of regional power systems.
The practice of transferring equipment from decommissioned European power plants allows for a faster response to some of Ukraine’s energy needs, as many components are already physically available and can be adapted for use at Ukrainian facilities. At the same time, such deliveries require technical inspections, dismantling, logistics, financing, and coordination among Ukrainian companies, European operators, and government agencies.
Since the start of the full-scale war, Ukraine has regularly received energy equipment from EU countries, international organizations, and private companies. This equipment is used to repair damaged power plants, substations, thermal facilities, grids, and critical infrastructure.
In Spain, more than 609,000 migrants without legal status have received temporary work permits as part of an emergency regularization program, according to Spanish authorities. The Spanish government released the first official results of the program on July 2.
In total, about 1.17 million people submitted applications for legalization by the June 30 deadline. This was more than double the authorities’ initial expectations, which had been for approximately 500,000 applicants. According to Reuters, 609,737 people have already received temporary work permits, allowing them to enter the formal economy while their main applications are under review.
The program ran from April 16 to June 30, 2026. It was open to undocumented migrants who could prove they had been residing in Spain for at least five months by the end of 2025 and had no criminal record. Participants are granted a one-year renewable residence permit and, for the duration of the application review, a temporary right to work.
As of the end of June, about 160,000 people among those who received temporary permits had already found formal employment. Spanish authorities are working separately with companies in the construction, tourism, transportation, and care sectors to help regularized migrants transition from the informal labor market to the formal one.
About 11,000 people have received fully positive decisions so far. The remaining cases are still under review: after the application period closes, the government has several months to process the bulk of the applications. According to El País, cases that have already been accepted for review grant applicants temporary residence and work permits.
Most applicants are from Latin America. Euronews, citing data from Spain’s Ministry of Integration, Social Security, and Migration, reports that about 67% of the applications came from citizens of Central and South American countries. Colombia leads the list, followed by Morocco, Venezuela, Peru, and Honduras.
For Spain, this program has not only humanitarian but also economic significance. The country is facing labor shortages in tourism, construction, caregiving, transportation, and agriculture. Legalization allows for bringing some workers out of the “gray” zone, expanding the base for social security contributions, and reducing businesses’ reliance on informal employment.
At the same time, the program remains politically controversial. Pedro Sánchez’s government presents it as a tool for integrating people already living in the country and as a response to labor market needs. Opposition parties criticize the amnesty, fearing an increased burden on state and municipal services. Legal disputes over certain aspects of the procedure are also ongoing, but the legalization process has not been halted.
This program does not primarily affect Ukrainians, as most Ukrainian citizens who arrived in Spain after the war began are not in an undocumented status but are under the EU’s temporary protection regime. According to the Spanish Ministry of Integration, Social Protection, and Migration, as of March 31, 2026, there were 345,995 Ukrainian citizens in Spain with valid residence documents, including temporary protection and other permits; these figures were published on April 30, 2026. This status already grants the right to reside and work, so the Spanish amnesty for undocumented migrants is primarily aimed at other groups of undocumented foreigners. Theoretically, it may apply only to certain Ukrainians who, for whatever reason, do not have temporary protection or other legal status and meet the program’s conditions. On June 26, 2026, the European Commission proposed extending temporary protection for people who fled Ukraine for another year—until March 4, 2028.
Global chip sales in May more than doubled (by 104.1%) compared to the same month last year, reaching $120.6 billion, according to a press release from the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA).
Compared to April, they rose by 9.2%.
“In May, the global semiconductor market continued to grow rapidly, reaching a record monthly sales volume,” said SIA President and CEO John Neufer, as quoted in the release. On a month-over-month basis, the figure increased for the fifteenth consecutive month, he noted.
Sales in North and South America soared 132.2% year-over-year last month, in Europe by 60.7%, in China by 88.8%, in Japan by 23.8%, and in the Asia-Pacific and other regions by 118.9%.
Compared to April, chip sales rose by 8.6% in North and South America, by 7.3% in Europe, by 10.7% in China, by 6.4% in Japan, and by 9.2% in the Asia-Pacific region.
The SIA includes approximately 99% of U.S. companies in the semiconductor industry and about 66% of chip manufacturers from other countries.
Kazakhstan’s Constitutional Court ruled that individuals who held the highest state offices under the 1995 Constitution may be re-elected or appointed to the corresponding posts after the new 2026 Constitution takes effect.
The decision was issued on July 7 in response to a request from President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, who asked the court to provide an official interpretation of the provisions regarding the number of terms for which one may be elected or appointed to a number of top government positions, including the presidency.
The court noted that the new Constitution does not contain provisions requiring that terms served under the previous Constitution be taken into account. Therefore, the fact of holding office prior to July 1, 2026, does not in itself constitute an obstacle to re-election or appointment after the new Constitution takes effect.
In practice, this means that Tokayev’s term, which began after the 2022 election, will not be counted toward the new presidential term limit. A new election following the 2026 Constitution’s entry into force will be considered his first for the purposes of applying these limits.
Reuters notes that the decision effectively resets the count of Tokayev’s presidential terms. However, it is not yet clear whether he will seek a new term in early presidential elections or remain in office until 2029.
Kazakhstan’s new Constitution took effect on July 1, 2026. It retains the limit of one seven-year presidential term, but, according to the Constitutional Court’s interpretation, this limit applies only to elections held under the new Constitution.
Thus, Tokayev has been legally permitted to run for president again, despite the previously existing limit of a single seven-year term.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering providing a loan of up to 34 million euros to the municipal utility “Rivneoblvodokanal” for the construction of new wastewater treatment facilities with a capacity of 60,000 cubic meters per day, the reconstruction of three sewage pumping stations, and the implementation of energy-efficient technologies.
According to the bank’s materials, the project is scheduled to be approved on July 22, 2026, and its total cost is estimated at 53.1 million euros.
The loan is to be disbursed in two tranches. It will be supplemented by an investment grant of up to 10 million euros from the Eastern European Partnership for Energy Efficiency and the Environment (E5P) Fund.
Repayment of the loan is fully guaranteed by the Rivne region, and 25% of the loan amount will be covered by a European Union (EU) guarantee under the Municipal, Infrastructure, and Industrial Resilience Program (MIIR) as part of the Investment Program for Ukraine (UIF).
The funds will also be used to install energy-efficient equipment and SCADA automated control systems at Rivneoblvokanal facilities.
The project aims to improve wastewater collection and treatment for approximately 240,000 residents of Rivne and surrounding areas, including internally displaced persons.
According to EBRD estimates, the new treatment facilities will treat 22 million cubic meters of wastewater per year in accordance with EU standards. The project is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% and net energy consumption by 45%.
The project is part of the EBRD’s “Resilience and Livelihoods” (RLF) program, which aims to restore and enhance the resilience of Ukraine’s critical infrastructure. It also includes training company staff to operate the new equipment and establishing a dedicated project implementation team.
As previously reported, in February 2026, the EBRD approved a 12 million euro loan for Rivne to finance the energy-efficient modernization of at least 24 social infrastructure facilities. The project, with a total cost of 19 million euros, also includes a 6 million euro grant from the E5P program and 1 million euros in co-financing from the city.
