PM Shmyhal: Government allocates $33 million to fortify Kharkiv, Chernihiv oblasts
The government has allocated over Hr 1.2 billion ($32.5 million) from the state reserve fund to construct defensive lines in the northeastern parts of Ukraine, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on Aug. 15.
At the request of oblast military administrations, the state is sending Hr 911.5 million ($24.7 million) to build up fortifications in Kharkiv Oblast and Hr 363 million ($9.8 million) for the same purpose in Chernihiv Oblast.
Both oblasts suffer regular strikes by Russian forces. Kharkiv Oblast at Ukraine's eastern border with Russia has been partially occupied since February 2022, however, the Ukrainian counteroffensive last fall succeeded in liberating most of its territory.
Russian forces recently started concentrating a significant force near Kupiansk in Kharkiv Oblast, after which the local authorities began evacuating dozens of settlements in the area.
Russian forces took parts of the northern Chernihiv Oblast in the spring of 2022 but withdrew after they failed to secure Kyiv. Russian sabotage groups regularly attempt to conduct cross-border raids into Chernihiv Oblast, with the latest one reported today on Aug. 15.
