Society
The Rada has authorised the verification of employment history without an employment record book – what the law changes
On 9 April 2026, the Verkhovna Rada adopted Bill No. 13705-d in its entirety, which simplifies the process of verifying insurance records for the purposes of pension awards and recalculations. The new rules are intended to assist people who have lost their documents due to the war, the destruction of archives, the closure of enterprises, or a lack of access to documents in temporarily occupied territories.
Alexander Rudynsky, star of *The First Swallows*, is set to appear in Netflix’s *Gundam*
Ukrainian actor Oleksandr Rudynskyi has joined the cast of the Netflix feature film *Gundam*. The film stars Sydney Sweeney and Noah Centineo, and production has already begun in Queensland, Australia.
Chernobyl 40 years on: remembrance, exhibitions and films about the man-made disaster
Almost 40 years have passed since the explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and the Exclusion Zone continues to capture the world’s attention. But today, in 2026, the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone is no longer just a site of tragedy.
A loud explosion rocked a thermal power station in Bucharest, with dozens of tonnes of oil ablaze
Late in the evening of 20 April, an explosion occurred at a thermal power station in Bucharest, the capital of Romania, followed by a major fire.
Rain, sleet and frost: what to expect from the weather on 21 April
Today, 21 April, cool weather is forecast across Ukraine, with rain, gusty winds and night-time frosts. Frosts and sleet are expected in the Carpathians.
Gold worth 2.15 million hryvnias was found in the declaration of an officer at the Kharkiv Territorial Centre for Recruitment
Artem Bespalov, an officer in the mobilisation department of the Kharkiv Regional Territorial Centre for Recruitment and Social Support, has declared gold bars worth 2,154,300 UAH. This information is contained in his electronic declaration for 2025.
Rinat Akhmetov has bought a flat in Monaco for a record €471 million
Ukrainian businessman Rinat Akhmetov has purchased one of the world’s most expensive flats in Monaco. The deal is estimated to be worth €471 million, which could set a new record in the property market.
The queue for passenger cars will start operating in June – what will change at the border
The Ministry of Community and Territorial Development of Ukraine has begun updating the e-Queue system, which involves the launch of an electronic queue for passenger cars and new features for lorries and buses. Oleksii Kuleba, Deputy Prime Minister for the Recovery of Ukraine and Minister of Community and Territorial Development, stated that the service for passenger cars is scheduled to launch as early as June.
Every year, 300,000 more people die in Ukraine than are born
Ukraine is currently losing around 300,000 people a year, excluding the effects of the war. According to Vasyl Voskoboynik, an expert on demography and labour migration, 450,000 to 500,000 people die in the country each year, whilst 200,000 to 250,000 are born.
How the number plate system works in Ukraine and what their codes mean
Ukrainian number plates follow a specific format that complies with international standards and enables vehicles to be identified abroad. At the same time, the system combines elements of the Cyrillic and Latin alphabets.
The Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre has warned of fake news surrounding the weather forecast
The Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre has urged the public not to trust misleading weather reports that have appeared in certain media outlets in recent days. The agency stated that some of these reports take phrases from the official forecast out of context, distort them and exaggerate them for the sake of clickbait.
The poet Daria Lisich has found herself at the centre of a scandal over an insult directed at a female soldier
Ukrainian poet Daria Lisich has found herself at the centre of a scandal following a public row involving blogger Yulia Verba. During a discussion on Threads, Lisich referred to Ukrainian Armed Forces soldier Maria Haievska as a “chicken”, sparking a wave of outrage on social media.
