The European Union plans to persuade Britain and Canada to step up their assistance to close Ukraine’s projected 70 billion euro funding deficit in 2027.

Brussels aims to raise the issue during summits with Canada on 29-30 October and with Britain on 20 November, according to a Politico report citing European officials and diplomats.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking at a summit in Brussels earlier this month, said the country’s military expenditure would reach 155 billion euros in 2027, requesting an additional 70 billion euros from European leaders.

The administration in Brussels wants to bring other allies into play, noting that a previously approved 90 billion euro loan is insufficient to meet all the costs.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen recalled that the EU and its member states have shouldered 80% of external aid provided to Ukraine, saying: “We urgently need our other partners to step up their efforts.”

According to bloc data, the EU and member states have transferred more than 231 billion euros in resources to Ukraine so far.

Brussels will not tie aid plea to trade conditions

European officials emphasise that the call to increase aid does not constitute a criticism directed at Britain or Canada.

Speaking to the publication, a European diplomat said Brussels would not directly link support for Ukraine to conditions on trade or defence cooperation, adding: “The EU is not going to pull a Trump and openly make its goodwill toward partners contingent on what they give to Ukraine.”

The EU had previously taken part in a commitment to provide 90 billion euros in loans to meet roughly two thirds of Ukraine’s requirements in the 2026-2027 period.

The Brussels administration also expected to raise 45 billion euros from partners such as Canada, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and Norway, though a portion of these funds has not yet been allocated.

The government in London states that it has committed 25 billion pounds to Ukraine, while Canada has pledged military aid valued at 5.4 billion euros alongside 8.2 billion euros in direct financial support.

Emphasising that her country is an unwavering supporter of Ukraine, Privy Council of Canada spokesperson Catherine Séguin stated that they have committed roughly 26 billion Canadian dollars for military, financial, humanitarian, and development assistance.

Brussels is also urging Japan to increase its aid volume.

A source familiar with Tokyo’s position stated that Japan has provided around 20 billion dollars to Kyiv and could allocate additional funds in line with Ukraine’s request.

National Bank of Ukraine Governor Andriy Pyshnyy announced in a statement during the summer that about 200 billion dollars in direct budget financing had been provided by the West since the start of the conflict.

At the end of June, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine calculated the country’s external financing requirements for the 2026-2029 period at 145.9 billion dollars.

Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko stated that, despite the assistance coming from the West, the country’s financing needs continue to remain elevated.

The European Commission has rejected a peace plan proposal from the US administration that entails resuming Russian natural gas purchases via Ukraine.

Commission spokesperson Paula Pinho stressed that Brussels has not changed its stance.

Pinho recalled that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had previously stated clearly that no restrictions on Russia would be lifted until the conflict comes to an absolute end.

The New York Times reported that the US president’s new peace proposal includes Europe returning to large-scale Russian gas purchases through Ukraine.

According to the report, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner raised the matter during talks in Kyiv last month with Ukrainian and European officials, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Sources contacted by the newspaper noted that some European and Ukrainian officials believe Washington would seek to secure a share of Russian gas exports.

Under this plan, the objective is to channel a share of the profits to American companies or the US government.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had said Moscow was ready to work on supplying fuel to European nations, but noted that a signal must come from the other side.

Putin stated that Moscow must evaluate the feasibility and necessity of fuel flows to the Western market, adding that they would not wait for Europe to shut the door ostentatiously on energy supplies.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov remarked that European nations rejecting Russian gas would make them dependent on the US and deprive them of the ability to diversify their supply sources.

Peskov noted that the US sells gas at very high prices and that if European nations pay more for energy, their industries will suffer.

The EU plans to halt liquefied natural gas imports from Russia entirely by 1 January 2027 and pipeline gas by 30 September 2027.

Von der Leyen had previously announced that the bloc would reduce Russian gas imports to zero by the end of 2027.

Russia halted gas flows to Europe via Ukraine as of 1 January 2025, when the five-year contract between Gazprom and Naftogaz of Ukraine expired.

Putin had stated that Kyiv refused to extend the transit agreement. Following the closure of the Ukrainian route, the TurkStream pipeline remained the only operational corridor carrying Russian pipeline gas to Europe.

A prosecutor investigating corruption allegations surrounding a real estate project linked to US President Donald Trump in Serbia was targeted with spyware, a new investigation has revealed.

The findings, published by the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab alongside the Serbia-based digital rights group SHARE Foundation, showed that Rade Bajić, who served at the Prosecutor’s Office for Organized Crime, was selected as a target.

Bajić became a target of the Pegasus spyware developed by Israel-based NSO Group after he publicly spoke out about political interference and abuses of power.

The prosecutor stated that on 13 August, he received a warning alert from Apple cautioning him against state-sponsored or mercenary spyware attacks.

Project cancelled, but investigation and pressure continue

The probe centres on a plan to transform the historic complex in Belgrade that housed the former Yugoslav Ministry of Defence headquarters into a luxury Trump Tower skyscraper.

Linked to US President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, the real estate development drew fierce backlash amid political pressure disputes and allegations that the site’s protected heritage status had been unlawfully revoked.

The investment firm founded by Kushner announced late last year that it was pulling out of the project, citing respect for the Serbian public and the city of Belgrade.

Recalling his investigation into claims that senior government officials had improperly lifted the historic military complex’s protected status, former prosecutor Bajić said: “In my opinion, my role in this case was the sole reason for the illegal spyware attack.”

Target list widens to university and judicial figures

The spyware scandal in Serbia has widened, sweeping in political opposition figures, civil society, and academic circles.

It was also confirmed that an iPhone belonging to University of Belgrade Rector Vladan Đokić was infiltrated by Pegasus spyware.

Đokić, who refused to back the government’s crackdowns on student demonstrations, has become one of the prominent figures of the protest movement.

Police raided his office on 31 March, seizing his computers and servers. Đokić had also been touted as a likely leader for a student-backed opposition list ahead of early general elections scheduled for Sunday.

Shortly before the report was published, a pro-government tabloid released audio recordings allegedly capturing Đokić discussing his political ambitions, putting him directly in the crosshairs.

While the source of the recordings remained undisclosed, Đokić stressed that the breach of his phone represented a grave assault on his personal privacy, safety, and the dignity of the rector’s office, demanding that those responsible be punished.

State institutions silent on allegations

Speaking to Politico, SHARE Foundation policy advisor Andrijana Ristić noted that surveillance operations had spread from civil society and journalists to student activists, politicians, and finally to members of academia and the judiciary.

Ristić stated that the lack of state action despite formal criminal complaints has fuelled this escalation.

Citizen Lab senior researcher John Scott-Railton emphasized that technology from NSO Group, which claims to turn over a new leaf every time an abuse is uncovered, is being deployed directly for repression.

Scott-Railton pointed out that targeting individuals who defend freedom against corruption was no coincidence.

The Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs left questions unanswered, though officials had previously denied allegations of cyber espionage.

NSO Group, which maintains that it sells its products exclusively to governments and was blacklisted by the US government in 2021 over human rights abuses, also made no comment.

Apple confirmed that it had sent mass threat notifications to users on 13 August, but provided no specific details regarding the cases of Bajić or Đokić.

In September, Citizen Lab and the SHARE Foundation disclosed that at least 14 individuals, including student activists and opposition figures, had received similar spyware alerts.