The trade turnover between Ukraine and Azerbaijan for the first time in seven years has reached an all-time high levels of almost $1 billion, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky has said. “The commodity turnover [between Ukraine and Azerbaijan] not only did not decrease, despite what is happening around the world and our states are no exception, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, for the first time in seven years, the trade turnover has reached an all-time high of almost $1 billion “, Zelensky said during a joint briefing with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Kyiv on Thursday.
According to Zelensky, Ukraine and Azerbaijan set a goal to double the volume of joint trade by 2024, increase the amount of joint investments and projects, in particular, the participation of Azerbaijani companies in the Great Construction program, as well as mutual participation in the construction of new infrastructure in both states.
Also, according to the president, Ukraine counts on the active participation of Azerbaijani business in privatization in Ukraine.
Ukrainian airports in 2021, according to recent data, served 16.221 million passengers, which is 87.2% more than in 2020.
According to the website of the State Aviation Administration of Ukraine, on international routes, passenger traffic at airports over the past year increased by 93.4% – to 14.753 million people.
Ukrainian airlines served 9.348 million people in 2021 (more by 94.9%), including in international traffic, almost 8.623 million people were transported (up 101.1%).
At the same time, over the past year, airlines operated 73,800 commercial flights (an increase of 62.9%), including 59,900 international (up 69.7%).
As reported, in 2020 Ukrainian airports served 8.664 million passengers, which is 64.4% less than in 2019.
National bank of Ukraine’s official rates as of 14/01/22
Source: National Bank of Ukraine
Official rates of banking metals from national bank as of January 14
One troy ounce=31.10 grams
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky watched online the launch of the Ukrainian Sich-2-30 satellite into orbit, which took place from the launch site at Cape Canaveral in Florida (U.S.), the press service of the head of state reported.
“I believe that this is the beginning of a new phase of the space program of our state. Thanks to the Ukrainian satellite Sich-2-30, we will receive information not only from our partners, but also our own. This is very important,” the President said.
Together with Volodymyr Zelensky, the launch was observed by Head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Oleksiy Danilov, First Vice President of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine Volodymyr Horbulin, Head of the National Space Control and Testing Center Volodymyr Prysiazhny.
This spacecraft is a modified version of the Sich-2 satellite. It was delivered into Earth orbit by a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle. The last launch of a Ukrainian satellite took place more than ten years ago.
Chief designer and head of the design bureau of spacecraft, measurement systems and telecommunications at Yuzhne Design Bureau Kostiantyn Bilousov said that Sich-2-30 will provide Ukraine with access to information that it has not had for the past ten years.
According to him, the satellite is designed to receive digital images of the surface of our planet, which can be used in land use, agriculture and forestry, cartography, to control water resources and monitor emergencies and natural disasters in the field of security and defense when illegal activities are detected.
The Ukrainian satellite is also designed to monitor the main parameters of neutral and charged particles of the Earth’s ionosphere and measure the dose of accumulative radiation from cosmic radiation.
After launch, the satellite will be involved in the European Union’s Copernicus Earth Observation Program.
Head of the State Space Agency of Ukraine Volodymyr Taftai said that a lot of work had been done to fulfill Zelensky’s assignment regarding the launch of this satellite.
“We have not launched our satellites for more than eleven years. And this is actually a new era in the launch of Ukrainian-made satellites. I really hope that this is the first of eight satellites that will be manufactured as part of a strategic program that is awaiting approval by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine,” he said.
The spacecraft was developed and manufactured by SE Yangel Yuzhnoye (Pivdenne) Design Bureau together with the Ukrainian enterprises “Khartron-Arkos LTD” (Kharkiv), “NPP “Khartron-Yukom” (Zaporizhia), “Protection and automation of objects NIIRV” (Kharkiv), CB “Arsenal” (Kyiv), State Research Enterprise “Konex” (Lviv), Lviv Center of the Space Research Institute of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, SE “Kyivprylad”.
The first resort town with an ecological philosophy, Dunaya Resort Ukraine in Tatarbunary district of Odesa region, will open in May 2023, project initiator Fazil Askerov has told Interfax-Ukraine.
“Our task is to open the first five hotels in May 2023. Then we will move at a rate of five to six hotels a year,” Askerov said.
As reported, the year-round resort with a gambling zone Dunaya is planned to be created on a spit between Lake Sasyk and the Black Sea. It is proposed to create 95 hotels and infrastructure facilities on 500 hectares. In the future, the hotels of the resort with 20,000 beds will attract about 6 million tourists annually. According to Askerov, the project will create about 25,000 new jobs, and in general, it will initiate the creation of up to 100,000 jobs in related industries. The Dunaya Resort Ukraine project was demonstrated as part of the Ukrainian pavilion at EXPO 2020.
On December 29, 2021, Odesa Regional Administration registered the state enterprise Dunaya with a charter capital of UAH 10,000.
According to Askerov, at the first stage, the tasks of the state enterprise Dunaya will be the registration of a land plot, the creation of a feasibility study and the development of a detailed plan of the territory.
“In order to attract investors, it is necessary to develop a preliminary project. In fact, at the first stage, Dunaya performs the functions of an investment nurse. After all, if you attract investors at the current stage with an unresolved status of the site, then the paperwork will take 15 years,” he explains.
After the launch of the project, Dunaya will act as a management company, namely, to monitor compliance with investment agreements and manage infrastructure facilities.
Askerov emphasized that when developing the concept, the experience of six countries was studied, which in the past 25 years have created gambling zones: Sri Lanka, Vietnam, South Korea, Georgia, Kazakhstan, and the Russian Federation.
