Frequent large-scale Russian attacks on Ukraine are still ongoing. On a single day, March 24, 2026, critical infrastructure in multiple Ukrainian cities was attacked with 948 Russian drones. This broke a previous record for most attacks in a 24-hour period. Most of the drones were shot down by Ukrainian missiles or were disrupted by electronic warfare on GPS or radio signals.
In addition to the hundreds of thousands killed, wounded, or displaced, fighting the war is costing Ukraine $172 million per day, with $100 billion needed for military costs in 2026. Housing and infrastructure losses have cost the nation an estimated $195 billion. Total reconstruction is estimated at $588 billion, and total economic loss, including lost business, exports, investment, and long-term economic damage are estimated at $1.7 trillion, three times its prewar GDP.
Cost-wise, the War on Drugs is a drop in the bucket compared to the war with Russia. However, Ukraine is continuing to invest in a costly failed policy proven to increase, rather than to reduce harm. A policy that criminalizes a portion of an already traumatized population seems, as it does in the United States and elsewhere, to be cruel, stupid, or both.
In a statement released to Ukrainian National News (UNN), the National Police of Ukraine wrote:
“Operatives of the anti-drug crime department of the National Police in Zaporizhzhia region, together with the Department for Combating Drug Crime of the National Police of Ukraine and investigators of the Zaporizhzhia district police department, exposed a group of individuals involved in the illegal circulation of the narcotic substance – kratom.”
On March 16, searches were conducted and police seized 1,100 kilograms of kratom being sold as matcha tea via Telegram. Four individuals were identified in the operation, and more are still being investigated. The police estimate the value of the kratom at 10.5 million hryvnias, or 239,027 USD, roughly $217 per kilogram.
Ukraine moved to outlaw kratom relatively recently as part of its broader alignment with international drug control standards and domestic anti-narcotics policy. Ukraine officially outlawed kratom in 2024 when the Cabinet of Ministers amended the country’s list of controlled narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances to include kratom and mitragynine, effectively banning its sale, possession, and distribution under Ukrainian law. This change was made through Resolution No. 1306 on November 15, 2024.