Russia Says 900 Ukrainian Soldiers Killed in Last 24 Hours

About 900 Ukrainian soldiers were killed during the past 24 hours in separate regions of Ukraine, Russian Ministry of Defense announced on Saturday.

In a statment, the ministry indicated that  Novosilovsky town in Luhansk People's Republic was liberated.

It is worth mentioning that, Ukraine has received a significant financial boost from the United States, with a new grant worth $1.25 billion, aimed at reimbursing state budget expenses, including salaries for government employees and social welfare benefits.

The Ukrainian Finance Ministry made the announcement on Monday, highlighting the grant's pivotal role in sustaining the country's financial stability.

The substantial grant was channeled through the Multi-donor Trust Fund of the World Bank as part of the fifth additional financing under the esteemed World Bank's Public Expenditures for Administrative Capacity Endurance in Ukraine (PEACE in Ukraine) project.

The project's primary objective is to provide essential financial assistance to cover state budget expenditures, particularly for social and humanitarian purposes.

Remarkably, this is not the first time that the United States has extended its support to Ukraine. In 2023 alone, Ukraine has received a total of $8.45 billion in grants from the US, demonstrating the strong commitment of international partners in bolstering the nation's fiscal resilience.

Since February 2022, a remarkable sum of $20.4 billion has been disbursed to aid Ukraine in navigating its financial challenges.

As a testament to the country's reliance on international support, last week, Roksolana Pidlasa, the chairwoman of the Ukrainian parliament's budget committee, revealed that the state budget has received an impressive $25.3 billion from global partners in 2023, constituting 49.1% of all state budget revenues.

Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko highlighted the magnitude of the economic impact due to the ongoing military conflict, stating that the country's budget has been facing a monthly deficit of about $5 billion.

To manage this fiscal shortfall, two-thirds of the funds have been sourced from foreign loans and grants, with three-quarters being allocated towards military needs.