Weekly Update #150
January 13, 2025

Source: UNHCR collation of statistics made available by the authorities

Situation Update (January 9, 2025)

OCHA condemns yesterday’s deadly attack in Zaporizhzhia City, Ukraine. Authorities reported dozens of casualties when a glide bomb struck vehicles, a tram and an industrial facility. 

The Humanitarian Coordinator in Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, said the attack marked yet again the intolerable killing and injuring of civilians in the country.

Humanitarian partners and first responders in Zaporizhzhia mobilized emergency assistance, including first aid. Humanitarian workers also helped transport the injured to hospital, clear debris, and provide psychological assistance to people affected by the attack.

Hostilities in other front-line areas of southern and eastern Ukraine yesterday also damaged homes and energy infrastructure, further impeding people’s access to basic services, including in the Dnipro and Kherson regions.

Source: UNOCHA

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Resilience of Ukrainians remains high, as UN maps aid and reconstruction needs for 2025

It has been almost three years since the 24 February 2022 full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has killed thousands of civilians and destroyed vital infrastructure, putting the economy under enormous strain.

The UN has recorded more than 28,000 civilian casualties and over 10,000 deaths, but acknowledges that the actual toll is very likely to be higher.

As the frontline shifts and hostilities increase, more than 14 million Ukrainians are estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance. The conflict is responsible for the largest refugee crisis since the Second World War. Over 6.3 million refugees have fled to neighbouring countries and 3.7 million people are internally displaced.

That means nearly one-third of the population has been forced to flee their homes, including more than half of all Ukrainian children. Some 30 per cent of the jobs that existed before the invasion have been erased, and the population has faced tax hikes and funding shortages, not to mention frequent power outages resulting from attacks on energy infrastructure.

UN aid lifeline: Millions supported amidst devastation

Throughout the conflict, the UN has been at the core of relief operations, working closely with Ukrainian authorities, local partner organizations and volunteers to make sure that assistance reaches those who need it, particularly in frontline communities.

In every part of the country, emergency assistance is mobilized in the wake of attacks. UN agencies are helping to demine, remove debris, provide basic services, find shelter for displaced people and provide healthcare, including mental health and psycho-social support. Last year alone, the World Food Programme (WFP) supported 1.6 million Ukrainians each month by providing food and cash assistance, demining agricultural land and supporting feeding programmes in schools and other institutions, whilst the UN humanitarian office reached 2.6 million people with health-related assistance over the course of 2024.

Despite the ongoing bombardments, Ukraine is rebuilding. . Dozens of projects are in the pipeline, focusing on the construction and repair of schools, kindergartens, hospitals, social housing, heating and water systems, and other social infrastructure.

Efforts to rebuild damaged energy infrastructure are not deterred by the continuing attacks. UN agencies and partners are providing over 500 MW of critical power generation and solar capacity, to ensure access to electricity, heating, and water.

There has been a decisive focus on decentralization to ensure that every region, including small towns and villages, is less reliant on electricity supplies from large, centralized power stations, reducing vulnerability to blackouts in the case of an airstrike. 

Whilst the destruction of a large power plant could paralyse a wide area and cut off tens of thousands of people from the grid, a decentralized system with a large number of small, renewable plants is better able to resist an attack: solar panels hit in a bombardment can be replaced within a single day. The UN Development Programme is fostering this new approach, assisting with everything from contract negotiations to training in solar panel installation.

A costly path to recovery

Nevertheless, the challenges facing the country are enormous, and extremely costly. The full cost of reconstruction and recovery is now estimated to be around $468 billion, according to a joint assessment by the Ukrainian government, World Bank, European Commission and the UN.

With winter temperatures dropping well below freezing, the UN’s humanitarian winter response plan aims to address emergency needs, including providing solid fuel, cash assistance, and water system repairs. Some $500 million is required to fully implement these efforts by March 2025.

In the coming days, UN humanitarian officials will travel to Ukraine to assess the latest situation, ahead of the launch of a fresh humanitarian appeal. Additionally, a broader humanitarian appeal for $2.2 billion is being prepared for 2025 to assist an estimated 12.7 million people.

Source: UN News (January 9, 2025)

• Russian shelling damaged electrical equipment in southern Ukraine’s Kherson region, leaving about 23,000 homes without power, according to the local military administration. “The Russian military shelled social infrastructure and residential areas of the region’s settlements, in particular, damaging 2 multistorey buildings and 8 private houses,” Kherson’s governor, Oleksandr Prokudin, said on Telegram.

• Russia’s Defence Ministry also said that its forces launched 139 missile, drone and artillery attacks on Ukrainian military targets within 24 hours.

• At least 13 people have been killed and another 32 injured in Russian shelling in Ukraine's southern city of Zaporizhzhia, local officials say. "The Russians cynically attacked the city in the middle of the day," regional head Ivan Fedorov said, adding that two guided aerial bombs hit residential buildings. Footage has emerged showing one high-rise building ablaze, and a number of vehicles on fire.

Commission disburses first €3 billion to Ukraine of its part of the G7 loan, to be repaid with proceeds from immobilised Russian assets

The European Commission has disbursed today the first €3 billion tranche of its exceptional Macro-Financial Assistance (MFA) loan for Ukraine, which will be repaid with proceeds from immobilised Russian State assets in the EU. This loan, amounting up to €18.1 billion, represents the EU's contribution to the G7-led Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) loans initiative, which collectively aims to provide approximately €45 billion in financial support to Ukraine. This initial disbursement highlights the EU's unwavering commitment to helping Ukraine confront Russia's full-scale war of aggression, maintain macroeconomic and fiscal stability, rebuild vital infrastructure, including its energy systems, and invest in defence infrastructure. 

What is this exceptional MFA package and how does it work?

This MFA is crucial for addressing Ukraine's urgent budgetary needs, which have considerably risen in the face of Russia's intensified and prolonged war of aggression. With the stable, regular, and predictable financial support of up to €18.1 billion to be disbursed in 2025 under this instrument, Ukraine will be able to support its current and future military, budget and reconstruction needs. This loan will be able to ensure macroeconomic stability and restore critical infrastructure destroyed by Russia, such as energy infrastructure, water systems, transport networks, roads and bridges. Furthermore, the loan can be used by Ukraine to directly support its military expenses. At the same time, by stabilising public finances, this assistance will also enable Ukraine to allocate resources to other priority expenditures, including military defence infrastructure against Russian aggression. 

The MFA instrument offers high flexibility and very favourable terms to Ukraine, with very long maturities which can extend to up to 45 years. Importantly, Ukraine is not expected to directly repay the loan from its own resources. Instead, the repayment will be ensured through the extraordinary profits from immobilised Russian assets collected from the Ukraine Loan Cooperation Mechanism (ULCM), sending a clear signal that the burden of rebuilding Ukraine will be shouldered by those responsible for its destruction.  

This operation builds on the earlier MFA and MFA+ operations in Ukraine and complements the longer-term financing provided through the Ukraine Facility, which will make available to Ukraine €50 billion between 2024 and 2027.  

Future payments to Ukraine under the MFA instrument are expected to continue between March and November, with €1 billion per month, with the remaining €6.1 billion allocated for December.  

The disbursement follows the adoption and entry into force of the Ukraine Loan Cooperation Mechanism and the Exceptional Macro-Financial Assistance Regulation in October 2024, and the subsequent adoption of the Commission Decision authorising the release of the Macro-Financial Assistance to Ukraine at the end of December.

President Ursula von der Leyen said: "Almost 3 years into Russia's war of aggression, Ukraine can keep counting on its friends and partners. Today we deliver 3 billion euros to Ukraine as the first payment of the EU part of the G7 loan. We give Ukraine the financial power to continue fighting for its freedom –and prevail. Europe has provided nearly 134 billion euros of support to Ukraine so far. And more will come. Just like the brave Ukrainian resistance, our support will be steadfast."

Source: European Commission

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UK continues to step up for Ukraine as new funding announced to bring war criminals to justice

Britain has continued to step up global leadership on Ukraine during 2024, with billions of pounds worth of military, economic, and humanitarian support pledged and delivered.   

As the government’s ironclad support continues into 2025, £4.5m is being announced today (Sunday) to aid Ukraine’s efforts in seeking justice for war crimes committed during Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The funding is designed to support Ukraine’s documentation, investigation and prosecution of war crimes, and complements the UK’s work with US and EU partners via the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group.  

Source: UK Government