President of Poland Andrzej Duda has stated the need to end the war in Ukraine with a just and lasting peace and emphasized the importance of transatlantic ties, the Polish President’s Office reports.
“Every day we bear the risks of war on our shoulders. The war in Ukraine must end. It must end in a just and lasting peace. Maintaining ties between the United States and Europe is fundamental,” Duda said.
He expressed doubt that increased aid to Ukraine from European countries would be able to compensate for the cessation of US aid, and called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to return to talks with the US side on continued support.
“President Zelensky must return to the negotiating table at any cost and as soon as possible, because it is in his interest that Ukraine survives this war. In my opinion, Ukraine will not survive without the support of the United States,” the Polish president said.
According to him, there is nothing to indicate that Europe will change its behavior and provide large-scale assistance to Ukraine. “Perhaps the whole of Europe will radically change its previous behavior and suddenly stand firmly and unanimously against Russia and provide Ukraine with exceptionally large-scale assistance that will allow it to continue to defend and fight. Perhaps it will provide such assistance and Ukraine will not be conquered by Russia, and secondly, this war will end happily for Ukraine. However, after what Europe has done in this regard, there is absolutely nothing to indicate this. If anyone can force Russia to end the war, it is the United States of America,” the president said.
Duda is also convinced that if an agreement is concluded between the US and Ukraine on minerals, “Ukraine will become strategic for the interests of the United States, and I am convinced that they will protect it.”
Ukraine and the People’s Republic of China have signed an agreement on the terms of export of Ukrainian aquatic products and peas to China, the press service of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food reports.
“The Ministry of Agrarian Policy continues to work on opening new markets and scaling up existing ones. Today we have signed an important agreement with the People’s Republic of China,” Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Vitaliy Koval said on Telegram.
According to the report, the agreement will allow Ukrainian farmers to gain access to one of the world’s largest markets, expand their presence in China, and support producers, especially in the fisheries and grain sectors. Ukraine will be able to increase exports and foreign exchange earnings, diversify its markets and integrate into global trade chains.
These agreements are the result of a dialogue between our countries and a series of high-level meetings. It was also the result of active cooperation between the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine, the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, associations, the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China, and the Chinese Ambassador to Ukraine, Ma Shengkun. I am confident that we have laid a solid foundation for expanding cooperation, as the last time such a contract was signed with China was more than 5 years ago,” the Minister summarized.
“On March 6, Kyivteploenergo announced a tender for compulsory motor liability insurance, according to the Prozorro e-procurement system.
The tender was also announced for services related to compensation for damage and negative consequences of transportation of dangerous goods by rail for CHPP-5 and CHPP-6, compulsory personal insurance against accidents in transport, compulsory liability insurance of subjects of transportation of dangerous goods.
The total expected cost of services procurement is UAH 3.913 mln.
The last day for submitting an application for participation is March 14.
US President Donald Trump’s administration plans to revoke the temporary legal status of some 240,000 Ukrainians fleeing the conflict with Russia, potentially putting them on a fast-track deportation path, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing senior officials and three sources familiar with the matter.
The publication writes that this is part of a broader effort by the Trump administration to revoke the legal status of more than 1.8 million migrants who are allowed to enter the United States under temporary humanitarian programs launched during the Biden administration.
It was previously reported that in January, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced the suspension of the United for Ukraine program for Ukrainians fleeing war in the U.S. due to the January 20, 2025 executive order “Securing Our Borders.”
In 2024, the insurance company Knyazha Vienne Insurance Group (Knyazha VIG, Kyiv) collected UAH 2.517 billion in insurance premiums, which is 26.36% more than in 2023.
This follows from the announcement of the rating agency Standard-Rating on the affirmation of the financial strength rating/credit rating of the insurer at uaAA+ for the period under review.
According to RA’s website, during the period under review, revenues from individuals increased by 25.89% to UAH 1.797 billion, and from reinsurers – by 55.04% to UAH 6.155 million. The share of individuals in the company’s gross written premiums amounted to 71.39%, and the share of reinsurers – 0.24%.
Insurance payments sent to reinsurers in 2024 increased by 30.29% compared to 2023 – up to UAH 314.465 million. Thus, the ratio of reinsurers’ participation in insurance premiums increased by 0.37 p.p. to 12.49%.
At the same time, RA notes that net written premiums increased by 25.80% to UAH 2.203 billion, and net earned premiums increased by 36.67% to UAH 2 billion.
The volume of insurance payments and reimbursements made by Knyazha VIG in 2024 increased by 58.53% compared to 2023, to UAH 1.005 billion. Thus, the level of payments increased by 8.11 percentage points to 39.94%.
In 2024, despite the loss-making result from operating activities, the insurer received a net profit of UAH 0.142 million.
Assets as of December 31, 2024 increased by 22.28% to UAH 2.180 billion, equity increased by 0.25% to UAH 449.832 million, liabilities showed an increase of 29.69% to UAH 1.730 billion, cash and cash equivalents increased by 62.93% to UAH 81.539 million.
RA notes that during the reporting period, the insurer made financial investments in the amount of UAH 1.014 billion, which consisted of government bonds (74.69% of the investment portfolio), as well as deposits in banks with a high credit rating (25.31% of the portfolio). Thus, liquid assets covered 58.64% of the insurer’s liabilities.
PrJSC “IC ‘Knyazha Vienna Insurance Group’ is a part of IFG Vienna Insurance Group Ukraine, the main shareholder of which is Vienna Insurance Group AG Wiener Versicherung Gruppe (Austria). The group also includes PrJSC IC Ukrainian Insurance Group – 100%, PrJSC IC KnyazhaLife Viena Insurance Group – 97.8%, LLC USG Consulting – 50.7%, LLC VIG Services Ukraine – 78.7%, LLC Assistance Company Ukrainian Assistance Service – 100%.
China’s Ping An Insurance is the most expensive brand among the world’s insurance companies for the ninth consecutive year, according to an annual study by consultancy Brand Finance.
Its value remained virtually unchanged over the year ($33.6 billion), while the brand value of German insurer Allianz increased by 9% (to $26.75 billion), allowing it to slightly close the gap.
Third place goes to France’s AXA ($19.83 billion, up 20%), which pushed China Life Insurance ($18.32 billion, up 5%) into fourth place. Rounding out the top five is Italy’s Generali ($16.98 billion, up 47%).
There are four U.S. brands in the top 10: Allstate Corp – $15.95 billion, GEICO – $15 billion, MetLife Inc. – $14.59 billion and Progressive Corp. – $14.24 billion. Between them, China’s PICC ($15 billion) ranks eighth.
The fastest growing brand was Japan’s Nissay/Nippon Life Insurance, whose value almost doubled (+94%) and reached $9.2 bln. This was due to the company’s expansion outside the local market, including through the purchase of a 20% stake in the U.S. company Corebridge Financial.
The total value of the top 100 insurance brands for 2024 grew 9%, according to the report. Meanwhile, U.S. brands rose in value by 12%, with the result that they now account for a quarter of the total value.
