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Ukraine's pandemic budget and a Russian missile test
Summary
A look back at two developments reported in mid-April 2020, one fiscal and one military.
What did Ukraine and its neighbourhood confront in the days leading up to 17 April 2020? Two reported developments point in different directions: a budget rewrite at home and a weapons test by Russia.
On 13 April 2020, the Verkhovna Rada adopted amendments to the 2020 state budget needed to fight the COVID-19 coronavirus disease. The changes tripled the budget deficit. That meant the state planned to cover the cost of its pandemic response by borrowing far more than the original budget had allowed.
Two days later, on 15 April 2020, United States Space Command reported that Russia had conducted a direct-ascent anti-satellite missile test. The report added a military-technological dimension to the regional picture, separate from the health emergency.
The two items are not linked in any reported way. Taken together, they show the range of pressures in the period: Kyiv adjusting public finances to a health crisis, while a neighbouring state was reported to be testing a weapon designed to target satellites.
