Top 5 News Stories 29 June
1. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has assigned a task to the Cabinet of Ministers to raise the minimum wage in Ukraine, the President’s press-office reports. “Ukrainians deserve a decent salary. I know raising wages is not an easy task. However, we did not look for easy solutions when we came to power,” the Head of State says. Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers has set a schedule for raising the “minimum wage” in Ukraine. From 1 September 2020, the minimum wage will be increased to UAH 5,000, from 1 January 2021 – to UAH 6,000, and from 1 July, 2021 – UAH to 6.500. https://www.president.gov.ua/news/na-vikonannya-zavdannya-prezidenta-uryad-viznachiv-grafik-pi-61929
2. The Swiss Federal Criminal Court found former Ukrainian MP Mykola Martynenko guilty of laundering about EUR 2.8 million through the Swiss financial system “as part of a criminal group.” The court also found another citizen of Ukraine Pavlo Skalenko guilty, who together with the ex-deputy is involved in the Ukrainian criminal proceedings of National Anti-Corruption Bureau and The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. This was reported by journalists of the “Schemes” program (Radio Svoboda and UA: Pershiy project), citing three reliable sources. Mykola Martynenko was sentenced to 28 months in prison, with an ‘unconditional’ 12-month sentence. Pavlo Skalenko was sentenced to 24 months in prison. Source
3. The pandemic has been accelerated: as of 28 June 2020, 917 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Ukraine over the past 24 hours. This brings the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 42 982, Міністерство охорони здоров’я України reports. Of all cases, 18 934 people have recovered, and 1 129 people have died. 4 935 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Kyiv, with 69 cases (four of them are lethal) – over the past 24 hours Telegram channel
4. Border guards of the Odesa detachment in the Black Sea port detained a truck that illegally tried to smuggle amber across the state border of Ukraine, the press service of the State Border Service said. “On 27 June, border guards together with customs officers were issuing a permit for the ‘Sea Partner’ motor ship to leave for Turkey at the Black Sea port. A Turkish-registered Mercedes cargo vehicle driven by a Turkish citizen arrived at the border check-point at about 20:00. Following the inspection of this car, the border and customs group discovered “sun stones” (amber) hidden in the driver’s cabin”. The foreigner prepared in advance for his trip and hid 23 kg of amber in plastic bags in the berth lining. Source
5. Due to the tense epidemic situation in Ukraine, children’s health camps will remain closed at least until 31 July, Health Minister Maskym Stepanov said at an online briefing. Stepanov explained that now, with a sharp increase in coronavirus infections across Ukraine, it is extremely dangerous to open camps, since these are the places with a very large concentration of children. Source
