04/10/2015 Ukraine: Daily Highlights - The withdrawal of the OUN volunteers from Peski near Donetsk Airport

OUN volunteers in Peski near Donetsk Airport © Reuters

04/10/2015 Daily Highlights by the "Digests & Analytics — Ukraine" News Agency

Topics from the Media and Social Networks

• The withdrawal of the Ukrainian nationalists (patriots) organization (OUN) volunteers from Peski near Donetsk Airport
• Czech President refused to visit the parade in Moscow.
• Poroshenko visited Odessa.
• Attempt to deprive oligarch Novinskiy of Ukrainian citizenship was unsuccessful.
• Poroshenko tell about the assassination attempt on MP Goncharenko.
• Parliament established an investigation commission of the power abuse by Yatsenyuk Cabinet.

Key Events in Ukraine

• President Poroshenko signed laws on the improvement of intelligent activities on the occupied territory and on attracting of demobilized in the reserve of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
• Naftogaz need to obtain a loan of $1.5 billion for purchase of natural gas to fill UGS.
• Agency Standard & Poor's downgraded the credit rating of Ukraine in foreign currency from CCC- to CC due to attempts to restructure the foreign debt.
• National Bank has introduced additional restrictions on the purchase of foreign currency for import contracts to prevent the outflow of currency abroad.
• Official hryvnia significantly strengthened against the dollar and the euro: 22.88 UAH/USD (-0.56 UAH), 24.19 UAH/EUR (-1,06 UAH), 4.48 UAH/10 RUR (+0,02 UAH).

Ukraine at War

• Shelling of Ukrainian positions continues, at least two Ukrainian soldiers were wounded yesterday.
• Anti-terrorist operation headquarters reports about concentration of 54 thousand Russian soldiers and more than 420 tanks, 1,920 armored vehicles, 700 artillery systems and MLRS, 380 aircraft and 130 helicopters on the Russian-Ukrainian border in the Rostov region.

Ukraine and the World

• Representatives of the European Commission confirmed that the trilateral gas talks between the EU, Russia and Ukraine are postponed.
• Former US Ambassador to Ukraine McFaul said Russia will use its veto in the UN Security Council and will block the sending of any foreign peacekeeping force to the Donbass, as it is not interested in ending the conflict. At the same time, the State Duma of the Russian Federation proposed to enter Russian "peacekeepers" in the Donbass. However, according to the Ukrainian authorities, the deployment of troops to the country is possible only by agreement with the government.
• The Netherlands are ready to resume work of the group of experts to find the remains and personal belongings of the victims of flight MH-17 near Thorez.

The Trends

• Internal contradictions in the ruling coalition are escalating. By the order of the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Groisman, representing block Poroshenko, a working group was created to verify the facts of power abuse in government revealed by former head of State Financial Inspection. These actions are aimed at reducing of the influence of the faction "People Front" and may cause the resignation of the government and the Prime Minister, whom President Poroshenko wants to replace by his own man.