Estonia is providing €340,000 in humanitarian assistance to Ukraine to help communities near the front line prepare for another difficult winter amid continuing damage to energy infrastructure caused by Russia’s attacks.

The Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the latest assistance is aimed primarily at people living in areas close to the front line, where humanitarian needs remain particularly severe. The funding will help families keep their homes warm, support livestock through the winter, improve accommodation centres for internally displaced people and provide mobile emergency facilities for Ukrainian rescue workers.

The assistance will be delivered through three long-standing humanitarian partners of Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs: NGO Mondo, the Estonian Refugee Council and the Estonian Rescue Association.

Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said Russia’s attacks continue to threaten Ukraine’s energy infrastructure and warned that Ukrainians are facing another difficult winter because of the war.

“Putin still hopes that attacks, cold and darkness will break the Ukrainians’ resistance. We will not let that happen,” Tsahkna said.

He added that Ukrainians are expected to face disruptions to electricity and heating as temperatures fall, creating additional difficulties for families trying to keep their homes warm.

Tsahkna also highlighted the particularly difficult conditions in communities near the front line, where fighting and damage from attacks have increased humanitarian needs.

“As Estonians, we know very well what a cold winter means,” the foreign minister said, explaining that Estonia is directing much of its assistance toward families remaining in their homes, people displaced by the war and rescue workers helping communities affected by the conflict.

€160,000 for internally displaced people

Of the total €340,000 package, €160,000 will be provided to NGO Mondo to help accommodation centres for internally displaced people prepare for winter.

The assistance will target centres located near the front line in Sumy, Dnipropetrovsk and Kharkiv oblasts.

According to Estonia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 13 accommodation centres will receive heating equipment and other materials. Two of the centres will also receive repairs and improvements to their thermal insulation.

The support is expected to provide warmer accommodation during the coming winter for approximately 860 internally displaced people. The beneficiaries will primarily include older people, people with disabilities, women and children.

€160,000 to support families near the front line

Another €160,000 will go to the Estonian Refugee Council to support families living near the front line in Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

The funding will help families maintain heating in their homes during the winter and cover costs associated with keeping livestock.

Livestock farming is an important source of income and livelihood for many families in these areas, making assistance for animals particularly important as winter approaches.

The project will also receive co-financing from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, known as DG ECHO.

€20,000 for mobile emergency points

The remaining €20,000 will be provided to the Estonian Rescue Association to purchase equipment for two mobile emergency points for rescuers working with Ukraine’s State Emergency Service, or SESU.

The mobile facilities will be deployed in areas where civilians face serious difficulties because of hostilities, air attacks and damage to energy infrastructure.

The emergency points will provide people in affected communities with a place to keep warm and access electricity. Where necessary, they will also provide psychological support.

SESU will deploy the mobile emergency points according to humanitarian needs and the situation on the ground.

Estonia’s latest contribution comes as Ukraine prepares for another winter under wartime conditions. Damage to energy infrastructure, continued attacks and fighting near the front line remain major challenges for civilians, displaced people and emergency workers.

Through the €340,000 package, Estonia aims to provide practical winter support to vulnerable families, internally displaced people and rescue workers in some of the areas most affected by the ongoing war.