Page 11 - UKRRptSept20

directed against former National Bank of Ukraine governor Valeriya Gontareva, is unlikely to change any time soon,” James Hydzik of Concorde Capital said in a note.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed a law on gambling on August 11, ending Ukraine’s decade-long ban on casinos and slot machines​. Several countries in Eastern Europe have been looking at legalising gambling for the extra revenue it generates. Belarus has also legalised gambling again, but so far Russia has restricted casinos to a few special regions and in particular it remains banned in the capital. Ukraine’s new law restricts casinos to five-star hotels in Kyiv, and to four- and five-star hotels outside of Kyiv. Slot machines will only be allowed in three-, four-, and five-star hotels. Billboard advertising is banned. Only people aged 21 or over are allowed to gamble. A nationwide poll found that 61% of the 2,000 respondents opposed legalizing gambling.
A new single-day record of COVID-19 cases was set in Ukraine, reaching 1,197 on July 29,​ Health Minister Maksym Stepanov reported at his daily press briefing this morning. An estimated 23 people died, while 760 recovered and 248 were hospitalized. A daily record was also reached of 199 in Kyiv, the nation’s largest city.
The city councils of the regional centers of Lutsk and Ternopil ruled on Aug. 3 to reject a state commission’s decision to include their regions among its red zones of COVID-19 infection rates​, and the respective requirement to intensify restrictions on public activity. It’s not understood what principles the commission used to reach its decision, considering other cities have worse statistics but were not designated as a red zone, said City Council Head Ihor Polishchuk, as reported by the ​volynnews.com​news site. The commission’s protocol on the decision is illegal and demonstrates “legal nihilism,” he said, adding that ceasing public transport – as well as the closure of eateries, stores and nurseries – will only complicate the situation. The decision was reached by the State Commission on Ecological Safety and Emergency Situations.
According to Oleg Ustenko, Presidential Advisor for economic issues, the cost to rebuild the Donbas under Russian control would be $10bn​. Speaking to Radio Donbas.Realii, an RFE/RL unit, he said that this would include donor money. The UN has fell far short in recent years in its campaigns for humanitarian aid to both sides of the line. Increasingly, Western donors funnel money into government controlled Donbas: a €64mn French loan for clean drinking water for Mariupol; a €25mn contract with Germany’s KfW development bank for displaced people housing, and a €100mn World Bank credit to rebuild infrastructure and revive farming in Luhansk oblast.
Radio Liberty car set ablaze after bug found at journalist home. ​A car belonging to the Skhemy investigative news program sponsored by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) was set ablaze the early morning of August 17. The KIA Cerato had been used by staff for four years and was parked at the house of its driver. Its leading investigative journalist, Mykhaylo Tkach, had reported in the prior weeks that officials with the State Security Administration (UDO) – responsible for the president’s security – were monitoring the same car and Skhemy journalists. On August 8, Tkach reported finding a covert listening device, or a wire, in his home. The UDO released a statement on August 17 denying any involvement in monitoring the car or setting it on fire.
11​ UKRAINE Country Report​ September 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com