As Russia keeps battering Ukraine’s grid and pressuring Moldova’s energy system, the EU is turning emergency support into a long-term strategy of resilience, market integration and accession.

Ukraine is running out of room to maneuver as a vital EU funding package remains blocked by Hungary, raising the risk of a serious budget shortfall later this year. While IMF support and early Japanese disbursements may keep the government afloat through the spring, officials say there is no dependable backup plan unless European money begins to flow.

In wars, the loudest spending is usually on shells, drones and air defences. The quieter spending matters too. On March 10th Sweden said it would channel just over SEK 71m to humanitarian work for women and girls in Ukraine, with the money split between UN Women and UNFPA under new three-year agreements. Of the 2026 allocations, SEK 22.5m is earmarked for UN Women’s humanitarian work in Ukraine and SEK 48.65m for UNFPA’s activities there. The money comes from Sweden’s development-assistance budget.

Ukraine has named a new supervisory board for Naftogaz in a move aimed at restoring confidence in one of the country’s most important state-owned companies. The decision comes amid renewed pressure to clean up governance in the energy sector after a string of corruption scandals and mounting scrutiny from international partners.

Sweden has confirmed that a drone jammed near a French aircraft carrier in the Øresund strait this week was Russian, sharpening concerns that Moscow is widening its hybrid tactics against European countries backing Ukraine.

Our latest Ukraine macroeconomic briefing finds an economy operating under severe constraints, yet remaining functional and resilient, supported by external financing, pragmatic policy management, and sustained reconstruction demand.

This is an analysis of the EBRD’s latest communiqué on financing Ukraine and it is, on balance, a surprisingly upbeat document for a continent living in the age of air-raid alerts and emergency procurement.

Sweden’s government on Thursday announced a new SEK 1 billion support package aimed at helping Ukraine’s energy sector recover from what Stockholm described as intensified Russian attacks during the winter.

Total international aid allocated to Ukraine remained broadly stable in 2025 despite a full halt in U.S. support, as European countries and institutions sharply increased their contributions, according to new data from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.

Sweden’s Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson offers a sober view of Europe’s relationship with Washington: cooperation remains necessary, but trust has been damaged. In an interview with POLITICO, he avoids personal judgments about Donald Trump, yet makes clear that recent U.S. pressure on allies—especially during the Greenland dispute—left a mark across Europe.

Sweden and Denmark are strengthening Ukraine’s air defence through a joint purchase of modern Tridon Mk 2 air defence guns. Deliveries are scheduled to begin within a year, and the initiative is expected to significantly enhance Ukraine’s ability to protect itself against drones, missiles and air attacks.

Ukraine’s economy is projected to continue growing modestly over the next two years, but economists warn that deep structural challenges and external imbalances will remain persistent. The Institute for Economic Research, together with the German Economic Team, forecasts that real GDP will expand by 2.1 % in 2026 and accelerate to 2.6 % in 2027, with private consumption and investment activity driving much of this momentum.

Ukraine’s decision to revoke and retender dozens of long-idle mining and energy licenses held by oligarch-linked companies could unlock billions of dollars in new investment and reshape the country’s strategic resource sector.

Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa, attends the opening of ReBuild Ukraine in Warsaw

After enduring the heaviest bombardment of its power grid since the war began, Ukraine is hitting back with growing precision. A sweeping campaign of drone strikes has knocked out nearly 40 percent of Russia’s oil refining capacity, driving exports to historic lows and forcing the Kremlin to ration fuel at home. With U.S. intelligence support and mounting economic pressure, Kyiv’s energy offensive is emerging as a decisive front—one that could bring Vladimir Putin’s war effort to the brink.

In an analysis published in The Economist, Europe’s financial support for Ukraine is reframed as a historic opportunity rather than a budgetary irritant. Wars may be fought with artillery, but they are won through economic endurance. Ukraine is approaching a severe liquidity crisis and could run out of funds by the end of February. Donald Trump’s halt to American aid has deepened the squeeze; prospects of a ceasefire have faded; and Russia’s drones continue to grind down what remains of Ukraine’s energy grid.

EU policymakers are now seriously considering a radical financial mechanism: turning Russia’s future war-reparation payments to Ukraine into immediate cash for Kyiv. The idea centres on the roughly $300bn in Russian state assets frozen after the 2022 invasion. Until now, the EU has only dared to seize the interest generated by the €200bn held in Europe, about €7bn a year, and repackage it into bonds whose proceeds flow to Ukraine. That is no longer enough.

Greece is moving to establish a joint venture, Atlantic, SEE LNG Trade S.A. formed by Depa Commercial and the AKTOR Group. The new entity will purchase LNG on the global market, import it to Greece, and sell it domestically and to regional partners, including Ukraine.

A Russian missile attack on October 25 destroyed the central warehouse and headquarters of one of Ukraine’s two largest pharmaceutical distributors, wiping out an estimated 20 percent of the country’s monthly stock of medicines and dealing one of the most severe blows to Ukraine’s business sector since the start of the full-scale war.

Sweden and Ukraine have taken a major step in their military-cooperation efforts, as Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a Letter of Intent on cooperation in air capabilities.