
Ukraine's embattled unity minister announces creation of aid centers abroad
The announcement comes amid reports that the ministry will soon be dismantled amid an ongoing cabinet reshuffle.
The 'unity centers' are expected to become 'real points of support for our people, helping them adapt, study, work, facilitate return, and most importantly, maintain close ties with Ukraine,' the minister tasked with repatriating Ukrainians said in a Facebook post.
Last month, Chernyshov was accused of fleeing the country after he found himself embroiled in a major corruption scandal tied to a housing project that he had approved while serving as urban development minister.
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky had previously noted that Chernyshov's prolonged stay abroad was related to a 'working trip.' The minister himself claimed that he'd already returned to the country, dismissing allegations that he had fled. Earlier in the day, this line was backed by Ukrainian MP Aleksey Goncharenko, who suggested that the minister had personally been working on establishing the unity centers.
Chernyshov's announcement comes as Kiev launched a major government reshuffle. On Monday, Zelensky officially tapped Ukraine's First Vice PM and Economy Minister Yulia Sviridenko to lead the government. According to Ukrainian media reports, incumbent PM Denis Smygal will become the defense minister, succeeding Rustem Umerov. The latter official is expected to leave the government and become Ukraine's envoy in the US.
The National Unity ministry, formed in late 2024, is expected to be dissolved altogether amid the reshuffle.
The Chernyshov affair has been widely seen as part of an ongoing power struggle in Ukraine, namely an effort of top Zelensky aide Andrey Yermak to tighten his grip on the country. Ukraine's leadership has increasingly become mired in palace politics and infighting, with the struggle threatening to fracture the country from within, a recent report by The Economist indicated.
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That's why Trump substitutes real strategy with theatrics: Shifting arms deliveries to NATO, proposing a new financing scheme for Kiev, tossing around tariff threats against Russia and its trading partners. It's about constantly filling the political space with action – or at least the illusion of it – to avoid the impression of paralysis or failure. If no progress is made on Ukraine within 50 days, he'll unveil a new plan that overwrites the old one. None of these announcements should be treated as final or irreversible – and in that, Trump is perfectly in tune with the nature of today's international politics. His behavior isn't a deviation – it's a reflection of the system. Trump's statement brings both good and bad news for Moscow. The good news is that the final decision was largely predictable – no surprises, no sudden turns. As is often the case with Trump, the 'teaser' for his policy was more dramatic than the main act. 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And that, it seems, bothers Trump more than the frontline situation itself. He's criticized Russia before for deep strikes into Ukrainian territory, and he did it again this time – presumably after being shown some grim images. As for other weapons, there were no specifics – just the familiar 'billions of dollars in military aid' line. The introduction of 100% secondary tariffs, delayed by 50 days, appears to be Trump's main instrument of coercion. As an economic determinist, he likely believes this is his most powerful and effective threat. But whether it will actually be implemented is unclear. Previous efforts to squeeze Russian energy exports – price caps, import bans – didn't exactly shut the flow. Russia adapted. In essence, the message is more psychological than strategic: You've got 50 days. After that, I'll 'get serious'. But Trump left one key question unanswered: How far is the US actually willing to go if there's no progress after 50 days? If tariffs are the endgame, and Washington backs off after that, that's one scenario. But if those tariffs are just the prelude to broader military or political escalation, that's something else entirely. Trump deliberately keeps things murky, leaning on the old idea that 'a threat is more powerful than an attack'. He seems to be counting on Moscow to imagine the worst. With his latest statement, Trump didn't just leave a crack open for Russia – he threw the window wide. He made clear he expects a practical response from Moscow within the next 50 days. As things stand, nothing prevents Russia from acting on the terms previously discussed with Trump: Initiating a 30-day ceasefire and entering talks with Kiev to start hashing out a concrete peace agreement. Of course, the problem remains that many of Russia's proposals are fundamentally at odds with Ukraine's position. Still, from a diplomatic standpoint, the ball is now in Moscow's court. And Kiev, in the meantime, comes out as the clear short-term beneficiary of Trump's announcement. We can expect the usual statements from Moscow rejecting the pressure – that sanctions don't scare Russia. And it's true that US-Russia trade is already near zero. There are no billion-dollar contracts left to speak of. Most economic ties were severed back in the Biden era. Washington has already imposed sweeping sanctions on Russian businesses and the financial sector. So if nothing changes over the next 50 days, the US will likely continue expanding military aid to Ukraine – but on a pragmatic basis. In doing so, Washington can channel European funding to keep its own defense industry running at full speed. Trump needs to save face. He once vowed to end the conflict in a single day – but that hasn't happened. Russia isn't backing down, isn't agreeing to a ceasefire with Ukraine, and isn't halting its offensive. There's nothing Trump can point to and sell as even a partial fulfillment of that campaign promise. So now he's under pressure to act. He's signaling to Moscow that he expects some kind of reciprocal move – and he's trying to extract it through a mix of diplomatic pressure and economic threats. What exactly Trump discussed with the Russian president remains unclear. But it's likely that Russia's core position was laid out: Full control over the territories now enshrined in its constitution. Russia simply cannot walk away from those claims. It's even possible that Trump's 50-day deadline is meant as a tacit acknowledgment of that reality – a window for Russia to consolidate its hold before talks resume. That would be his version of compromise. Trump often opens negotiations with bold, hardline offers – the kind you 'can't refuse', as American political lore puts it – only to walk them back later and land somewhere in the middle. That's his style, drawn straight from the world of business deals: Apply pressure first, then strike a bargain. Of course, these latest announcements – especially the pledge to send weapons – will only increase criticism of Trump within Russia. Still, this isn't the harshest stance he could have taken. It's a tough message, but one that still leaves room for maneuver. I wouldn't say we're standing at the brink of a new escalation. Trump hasn't endorsed the sanctions bill currently under discussion in Congress. Instead, he's talking about imposing 100% tariffs by executive order – just as he's done in the past. In doing so, he's clearly distancing himself from that legislation. There are no immediate sanctions coming. The 50-day timeline he mentioned is just the latest in a series of deadlines he's floated before. On the one hand, Trump wants to avoid sliding back into the kind of confrontation with Russia that defined the Biden era. On the other, he doesn't want to see Ukraine defeated – nor is he willing to accept a Russian ceasefire on Moscow's terms, since that could be spun as a US loss, and by extension, a personal failure. He keeps repeating that this is 'Biden's war' – but the longer it drags on, the more it becomes his own. As for the Patriots, it's Europe that will be footing the bill. Trump didn't promise any new funding from the US budget. What remains to be seen is how many systems and missiles the US defense industry can actually produce – and how many European countries are willing to buy. From Moscow's perspective, this is still the US arming Ukraine. Washington is also continuing to share intelligence and support logistics. No one in the Kremlin is going to say, 'Thank you, Grandpa Trump – now you're just a vendor'. That's not how this will be seen. The scale of this conflict is such that no single move – not by the US, not by Russia, not by anyone – can produce a sudden breakthrough. The only person who could do that is Vladimir Zelensky – by surrendering. There's no weapon system that could fundamentally change the course of this war, short of nuclear arms. And the only other game-changer would be direct involvement by the US or NATO – but if they'd wanted that, they would've intervened long ago. As for Trump's tariff threats against Russia and its trading partners – that's really just kicking the can down the road for another 50 days. Classic Trump. From Russia's standpoint, we're not shipping anything to the US anyway. As for our trading partners – yes, we're talking about China and India. But this move would only add to the contradictions in Trump's chaotic tariff diplomacy, where every issue is approached through economic threats. I don't think it's going to work. I don't see how Trump thinks he can pressure India. China – maybe. But Beijing is already staring down a whole slew of tariff threats. One more won't make things easier – just worse. If anything, it will reinforce the idea that the US sees China as vulnerable to pressure. And that's not a message China will take lightly. If this is all Trump had to say about Ukraine today, then the hype was definitely overblown. Most of Lindsey Graham's alarmist fantasies remain just that – fantasies. A 500% sanctions package makes little practical sense. As for Europe, it looks like they'll keep picking up the tab – again and again. What they thought was free cheese turned out to be a trap. The only true beneficiary here is the US defense industry. Ukraine, meanwhile, is left to fight until the last Ukrainian – a fate they seem to have chosen for themselves. But 50 days is a long time. A lot can change – on the battlefield, in Washington, and in NATO capitals. What matters most, though, is that none of this has any real impact on our own determination. At least, that's how I see it. Trump has given Russia 50 days to complete the job: To fully liberate our four regions, take Kharkov, Odessa, Dnepropetrovsk – and ideally, Kiev. After that, he's promised to get truly angry and hit back with 100% tariffs on our key oil buyers – India and China. That's a serious threat. So now we have 50 days to finish what we've left unfinished over the past 25 years. This is precisely the kind of moment captured in the old Russian saying: 'We take a long time to harness the horses, but we ride fast'. Given the circumstances, I believe any weapons can be used, against any targets. We have 50 days to win.