What happened around Ukraine by 23 November 2021?

What was the regional picture on 23 November 2021? In the days leading up to that date, three developments stood out: a nuclear power agreement, a media investigation and a military drill on the Baltic frontier.

On 22 November 2021, the state company Energoatom and the American electrical engineering company Westinghouse Electric signed an agreement to build two new nuclear power units at the Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant.

An investigation published

On 17 November 2021, Bellingcat and The Insider published the first part of their joint investigation into what became known as the Wagnergate affair.

A border drill in Estonia

On the same day, 17 November 2021, Estonia summoned 1,700 reservists for a snap drill. The exercise included installing a 40-kilometre razor wire barrier along the border with Russia. It came as the migrant crisis between Belarus and the European Union intensified.

Taken together, these reports from the days before 23 November 2021 show energy cooperation with a US company, a published investigation and a security response on the EU's eastern edge.