Lithuania is allocating EUR35 million to Ukraine for the purchase of radar and demining equipment, and plans to supply more than 5,000 Lithuanian-made drones by the end of the fall, Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonite said.
“At our meeting today, I informed President Zelensky that the recent package of military assistance from Lithuania to Ukraine will arrive in early September. It will include 10 short-range air defense systems, 30 anti-submarine missiles and other equipment, weapons and ammunition. In addition, we are allocating 35 million euros for the purchase of radar and demining equipment,” Šimonite said at a press conference on Saturday.
“By the end of the fall, we hope to be able to provide more than 5,000 Lithuanian-made drones,” she added.
According to Šimonite, the Lithuanian government has pledged to spend at least a quarter of its GDP on defense and security assistance to Ukraine each year.
“My government will not only ensure but also exceed this plan. I hope that no matter what kind of government we have after the elections in October, it will remain committed to this goal,” she emphasized.
The Prime Minister added that a new package of equipment to help restore Ukraine’s energy sector is also coming. In addition, Lithuania will continue to support Ukraine’s recovery with a focus on the education and healthcare sectors.
“Today, another kindergarten in Borodyanka, which Lithuania helped to restore, has opened and is ready to welcome Ukrainian children. In response to President Zelenskyy’s request, we will also help three hospitals in Zhytomyr, Dnipro and Lviv regions,” Šimonite said.
Passenger flow through western border of Ukraine in April 2024, thousand
Source: Open4Business.com.ua
In the first half of 2024, state-owned Ukrposhta increased its revenue by 10.6% year-on-year to UAH 6 billion 170.2 million, while reducing its net loss by 34.5% to UAH 428.1 million.
According to the reports published in the disclosure system of the National Securities and Stock Market Commission (NSSMC), the company’s gross profit in the first half of 2024 increased 16.6 times – from UAH 31.1 million to UAH 550.6 million, while operating loss decreased by 43.6% to UAH 420.9 million.
In the first half of the year, national postal services accounted for the largest share of total revenues – UAH 3 billion 587.6 million (+19.5%), including the delivery of parcels and small packages – UAH 1 billion 895.2 million (+19.8%), written correspondence – UAH 741.8 million (+11.1%), international postal exchange – UAH 614.4 million (+34.5%), and subscriptions and delivery of periodicals – UAH 141.5 million (+36.5%).
Financial and related services brought Ukrposhta UAH 2 billion 203 million (+5.4%), including payment and delivery of pensions – UAH 1 billion 435.7 million (+0.1%), payment acceptance – UAH 561.8 million (+12.9%) and postal transfers – UAH 156.4 million (+19.5%).
Revenues from trading in the company’s own and commission goods decreased by 22.4% to UAH 377.8 million in the first half of the year.
It is noted that investment expenditures on non-current assets increased by 31.8% to UAH 312.1 billion.
It is specified that as of June 30, 2024, funds on demand and deposits in the amount of UAH 2 billion 105.7 million (as of December 31, 2022 – UAH 2 billion 275.1 million) were placed in three large Ukrainian state-owned banks.
It is noted that as of the middle of this year, the company’s current liabilities exceeded its current assets by UAH 3.49 billion, while at the beginning of the year they were UAH 3.01 billion.
According to the report, as of June 30, the company had about 28.84 thousand points of presence in Ukraine and 33.64 thousand employees.
It is emphasized that the company is gradually adapting to the difficult conditions by improving its business processes and investing in automation and continuous operations. In particular, by the end of the third quarter of 2024, it plans to complete the transition to automated parcel sorting and implement a new Track & Trace system.
“A special priority for the company is to prepare for a difficult winter in the face of possible blackouts. We are purchasing additional materials and equipment for heating, power supply and communications, including additional 3-in-1 devices for the network. The new BePost front-end system is being scaled up, and IT systems are being finalized to enable offline operation,” Ukrposhta said.
The company noted that it sees these measures not only as additional critical investments in continuity, but also as a potential opportunity to increase service volumes in the event of power outages.
According to its management, taking into account the probability of possible scenarios, Ukrposhta’s cash flows from operating activities for the 12 months to the end of the second quarter of 2025 are positive. The company has additionally assessed potential risks of its operations, primarily such as a shortfall in revenues from postal and financial areas during blackouts and additional costs for the winter.
“The corresponding stress test of the liquidity forecast demonstrates that the company will be able to continue to meet its obligations to creditors and complete key investment projects in the foreseeable future,” the report says.
As reported, in the first quarter of 2024, Ukrposhta increased its revenue by 10.1% to UAH 3.05 billion, reducing its net loss by 2.1 times to UAH 190.3 million.
Impact of electricity deficit on real GDP vs no deficit, % (forecast up to 2024)
Source: Open4Business.com.ua
Independent US presidential candidate Robert Kennedy Jr. has announced that he will support Republican candidate Donald Trump in the upcoming elections.
“I will be supporting Trump,” he said during his address to voters.
At the same time, Kennedy Jr. explained that this does not mean the end of his campaign. He said that his supporters would be able to vote for him in those states where Trump would not be able to win a majority of votes anyway.
At the same time, Kennedy Jr. noted that in 10 states where both Trump and his rival Kamala Harris have a chance of winning, he will withdraw his candidacy so as not to take votes away from the Republican candidate.
During the week, the US media wrote that Kennedy might announce his withdrawal from the race in the near future.
On Tuesday, Trump told CNN that if he wins, he may give Kennedy a position in his administration if he refuses to run and supports the Republicans.
In April 2023, JFK Jr. announced his candidacy for the Democratic presidential primary. However, he later stated that he would run as an independent candidate.
In recent months, American media have noted that Kennedy would not have a serious chance of winning if he ran. However, in a number of states, he could have taken a significant number of votes from other candidates and thus influenced the election results.
Robert Kennedy Jr, 70, is an environmental lawyer and anti-vaccination activist. He is the son of former New York Senator and U.S. Attorney General Robert Kennedy and the nephew of the 35th President John F. Kennedy.
Earlier, the Experts Club analytical center presented an analytical material on the most important elections in the world in 2024, a detailed video analysis is available here – https://youtu.be/73DB0GbJy4M?si=eGb95W02MgF6KzXU
Energy imports, forecast, bln dollars
Source: Open4Business.com.ua
