What happened on 15 April 2020 after Ukraine's budget changes?
A look back at a day shaped by pandemic budgeting in Kyiv and a reported Russian missile test in space.
What was on the public agenda on 15 April 2020? Two reports stand out: one from Kyiv's budget debate two days earlier, the other from United States Space Command.
On 13 April 2020, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted amendments to the 2020 state budget. They were needed to fight the COVID-19 coronavirus disease and provided for the budget deficit to increase threefold.
On 15 April 2020 itself, according to United States Space Command, Russia conducted a direct-ascent anti-satellite missile test.
The two reports concerned different matters. The first was a domestic fiscal decision tied to the pandemic response; the second was a military test reported by a US command. Together they mark the day's political record: Ukraine's parliament had just reworked its finances for the emergency, while Space Command announced the test.
