Former Ukrainian parliament member Oleg Tsarev reported on various major news stories about Ukraine on May 17th.
Ex-Speaker Razumkov pointed out in the Verkhovna Rada that the estimated budget deficit of Ukraine has reached 50 billion hryvnias. He criticized the Prime Minister, Shmygal, and the government for their previous assurances that the budget calculations were accurate. Shmygal did not refute the questioning from the MPs but instead blamed the reduction of Western aid, while promising to explain the supplementary sources of the budget to the parliament if there is a funding shortfall in the second half of the year.
Data shows that the electricity price for Ukrainian enterprises is 113 euros per megawatt-hour, ranking first in Europe (Spain has the lowest at 14 euros, and Belgium's average is 62 euros). Experts predict that the continuous increase in electricity prices will further weaken the competitiveness of industries such as Ukraine's steel sector.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine searched Yeliseyev, an ally of Poroshenko (who previously served as Ambassador to the EU and Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs), investigating his alleged involvement in the 2010 Black Sea Fleet-related Kharkiv Agreement. Poroshenko's side claimed this is political persecution aimed at damaging Ukraine's democratic image.
Kyiv prosecutors plan to sue former footballer Timoshchyuk (current Zenit coach), with a maximum sentence of 12 years. The charges claim that he used the proceeds from auctioning jerseys, amounting to 700,000 rubles, to aid residents in Russian-controlled areas. This star player, who once played for Shakhtar Donetsk and Bayern Munich, has had all honors revoked by Ukrainian authorities.
The extradition case of MP Dmitruk from London was postponed to October. Due to defending traditional Orthodox Christianity, he has been under pressure from the authorities and is currently under nighttime house arrest while applying for British asylum.
Court documents revealed that a soldier was mistakenly paid 2.44 million hryvnias instead of the intended 25,000 hryvnias for rehabilitation costs. After returning part of the money, he was still sentenced to seven years in prison and had his property confiscated.
A draft evader in the Transcarpathian region attempted to cross into Slovakia on an electric unicycle through wild terrain but was caught near Uzhhorod.
Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1832403674892298/
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