UNITED24 Media Telegram Highlights
U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said he had arrived in Budapest just days before the parliamentary elections because “Brussels’ interference” in the vote was outrageous.
He also stressed that Orbán’s leadership could be a model for Europe. He added that the U.S. would do everything possible to ensure Orbán’s re-election.
Orbán said that if his Fidesz party wins the April 12 elections, he will be able to implement a plan to force Ukraine to resume supplies of Russian oil to Hungary.
There is almost no traffic in the Strait of Hormuz after the announcement of a ceasefire in the US-Israeli war against Iran, CNN reports.
Ships and insurers need positive signals before resuming traffic in this waterway, CNN writes, citing open shipping data and expert opinion.
Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) has disabled Russia’s last railway ferry in Kerch.
The Slavyanin was used to supply Russian troops in Crimea with fuel, equipment, and ammunition.
Earlier in March, the Avangard ferry was disabled, and the Slavyanin was damaged.
❗️Russia has threatened the Baltic states if they continue to support Ukrainian drone attacks, according to The Times.
The warning to Estonia, Finland, and Latvia comes in response to Ukraine’s ongoing strikes on key Russian oil infrastructure in the region.
The European Commission will find a way to provide aid to Ukraine in April, even if Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán does not lift his veto on the €90 billion loan, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told Franceinfo.
“I want this €90 billion loan to be finalized. I know that sooner or later it will happen. I am absolutely convinced of this.”
Russia’s fourth-largest refinery, Nizhegorodnefteorgsintez, has halted operations following a drone strike, Reuters reports.
According to sources, the Lukoil facility shut down on April 5 after a Ukrainian drone attack. Fuel supplies may be disrupted until at least the end of the month.
The refinery is one of Russia’s largest and produces a significant share of its gasoline.
Russian oil prices have risen to a 13-year high amid the war with Iran, according to Bloomberg.
The price of Urals crude reached $116 per barrel, almost double the level budgeted in Russia ($59). The increase is driven by a global price surge due to the conflict in the Middle East and restrictions on supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.
At the same time, Russia’s revenue growth is being partially curbed by Ukrainian attacks on oil infrastructure and ports, which are disrupting exports.
In the Kharkiv region, a 19th-century architectural monument burned as a result of a UAV attack.
In the village of Velykyi Burluk, Kupiansk district, an enemy drone struck a historic wooden building. The fire covered about 2,000 square meters.
Pilots of the 23rd Khortytsia Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine discovered and destroyed a Pantsir-S anti-aircraft missile and gun system deep behind enemy lines.
White storks return to Chornobyl for the first time in 20 years.
Six white storks were spotted in the city center at once—the birds landed to rest on the roof of the administration building near the “Wormwood Star” memorial.
A Japanese philanthropist has returned an Olympic medal to Stanislav Horuna, which he had sold to help Ukraine.
The Ukrainian karateka and bronze medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics had put the award up for a charity auction in 2022.
A buyer from Japan purchased it for $20,500 to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine and later decided to return it to its rightful owner as a gesture of solidarity.