The Australian government is allocating $AU 50 million ($32.4 million) for military assistance to Ukraine, the money will be transferred to the International Fund and used to purchase military equipment for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to Australia Vasyl Miroshnychenko said.
“There is good news from Australia. The Australian government is transferring 50 million Australian dollars (32.4 million US dollars) as military aid to Ukraine. The funds will be transferred to the International Fund for Ukraine (UK) for the further purchase of weapons and equipment for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Miroshnichenko wrote on his Facebook page on Thursday.
According to a report published on the Australian government’s website, Australia’s total support for Ukraine will amount to about $960 million, including $780 million to help the Armed Forces.
“Australia remains committed to supporting Ukraine and the Ukrainians who defend their people, their territory and their sovereignty. The contribution announced today will bring Australia’s total support to Ukraine to approximately $960 million, including $780 million in assistance to the Ukrainian armed forces,” the press release said.
Kokhava Paper Mill (KBF, Lviv region), which produces sanitary paper products, increased its production by 8.7% in January 2014 compared to January 2013, to UAH 102.94 million, according to statistics from Ukrpapir Association.
According to the data provided to Interfax-Ukraine, in physical terms, production of the base paper for sanitary products increased by 1.7% to 3.6 thousand tons.
Last month, production of toilet paper in rolls increased by 12.3% to 12.7 million units. KBF retains the second place in terms of its output after Kyiv pulp and paper mill (21.3 million units).
As reported, in October last year, Kokhava Pulp and Paper Mill commissioned a paper machine with an estimated capacity of 25 thousand tons per year to produce pulp base paper (previously it produced only waste paper-based products), creating up to 200 new jobs.
To organize such production in 2021, the pulp mill attracted a EUR 13.8 million loan from the EBRD.
Operating since 1939, the Kokhava Paper Mill produces the base paper for sanitary and hygiene products, as well as toilet paper and paper towels. Before the new machine was put into operation, the mill had two paper machines with a total capacity of 40 thousand tons of base paper per year.
In 2023, the mill increased its production by 18% compared to 2022, to UAH 1 billion 151.2 million.
On February 10-11, the Ukrainian Squash Championship 2024 took place at the courts of the capital’s Sport Life fitness club in Teremky, bringing together 120 athletes from all over the country. The competition was attended by representatives from Kharkiv, Dnipro, Poltava, Odesa, Kherson, Lviv and other regions of the country.
Anastasia Kostiukova and Denis Podvorny became the champions in the adult category, defeating their rivals by demonstrating a high level of skill and invincible spirit. This victory was especially significant for Denys Podvornyi, as he managed to return to the competition after a year of recovery and win his 7th Ukrainian title, losing only two games to his opponents.
Full list of tournament winners:
Boys under 9 years old:
1st place Kostyukov Artem
2nd place Nikolai Filipov
3rd place Mark Grabovsky
Boys under 11 years old:
1st place Schneider Artem
2nd place Matyukhov Egor
3rd place Horbunov Ivan
Girls under 13 years old:
1st place Syvoplias Victoria
2nd place Orlenko Oleksandra
3rd place Krasnokutska Daria
Boys under 13 years old
1st place Andrii Hutsailiuk
2nd place Doroshenko Gleb
3rd place Tomenchuk Mykyta
Girls under 17 years old:
1st place Krykun Anastasia
2nd place Vlasenko Daria
3rd place Tarasova Anna
Boys under 17 years old:
1st place Panchenko Artem
2nd place Danylo Kurilyak
3rd place Shcherbakov Yegor
WOMEN:
1st place Kostyukova Anastasia
2nd place Krykun Anastasia
3rd place Sardak Liana
MEN:
1st place Podvorny Denis
2nd place Panov Nikita
3rd place Petrovych Ruslan
The organizers expressed their sincere gratitude to the Armed Forces of Ukraine for the opportunity to host and conduct such events. They also thanked the Sport Life club network for providing courts free of charge, Interfax Ukraine, Experts Club and Maxim Urakin for their media coverage of the tournament, as well as Thermopab represented by Alexander Batashov and KRAINA for their tireless support and assistance in organizing the tournament.
Special thanks go to Tecnifibre for valuable gifts for the children’s categories, as well as to all the players and referees who were able to join this sporting event.
This championship confirmed that even in difficult times, Ukrainians retain the ability to unite, grow and achieve great success. The winners and runners-up in the children’s categories once again reminded us of the importance of sport in developing young people and strengthening the national spirit.
ANASTASIA_KOSTYUKOVA, DENIS_PODVORNY, DMITRY_SHCHERBAKOV, SPORTS, SQUASH, TOURNAMENT
This Saturday, the Experts Club Kyiv Training Center in cooperation with Art Gallery Universe opens an exhibition that goes beyond the usual understanding of art, approaching therapy and recovery. “Restoring Life: Art and Rehabilitation Project” is a series of works created by contemporary Ukrainian artists Igor Moshkov and E-Ludmyla Svitla, who convey deep emotional states and ways to rethink and overcome them through painting.
“Each painting in our exhibition is not just an image, it is a dialog between the artist and the visitor that helps to find inner harmony and peace. We are creating a space where art becomes a tool for psychological recovery for those who have faced challenges,” says Maksym Urakin, founder of Experts Club.
“For me, every brushstroke is a step towards comprehension and healing. My works are the stories I want to tell, and I believe they can help others find their way to inner light,” said E-Ludmyla Svitla.
The exhibition offers an extraordinary experience that combines art therapy and art, giving visitors the opportunity not only to enjoy painting, but also to discover a new tool in the fight against post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and its consequences. The project focuses on supporting spiritual health and mental recovery through artistic expression, creating a safe space for personal growth and self-expression.
“Recovering Life” reflects the true power of artistic symbolism, which lies not only in aesthetic pleasure, but also in its ability to heal and unite people around art.
Address of the event: 51/1A Vasyl Tyutyunnyk Street, Kyiv, office 112.
The beginning is February 17, 2024 at 15:00.
The number of participants is limited. For media accreditation, please contact fam@experts.news by 23-00 on February 16, 2024.
Kyivstar, Ukraine’s largest Internet provider by subscribers, continues to secure its Home Internet service in case of power outages. In 2023, the company invested more than UAH 200 million to provide uninterruptible power supplies for Home Internet. It will invest an additional UAH 50-70 million by the end of February 2024. The provider also continues to actively launch GPON Internet in different cities of Ukraine.
Kyivstar employees started connecting the Home Internet network to uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) in October 2022 and will continue to do so to provide 700 thousand subscribers with Internet access even in the event of a power outage. This modernization will allow the Home Internet network to operate in the absence of power for up to 5 hours.
In total, the service users will be provided with equipment for uninterrupted operation in 44 cities of Ukraine. In total, the provider plans to cover more than 22.3 thousand addresses where UPS will be installed. 180 specialists are involved in the process of installing, checking and testing equipment throughout Ukraine.
Kyivstar also started connecting the Internet using GPON technology at the end of 2023. In 2024, the company plans to partially modernize and replace existing technologies with GPON in some cities. This connection technology is more energy efficient.
“In the context of short- and medium-term outages, GPON can provide consumers with Internet access for longer, including because we build lines from base stations with mobile diesel generators. And as long as we have the human resources and the ability to supply fuel and components to keep the generator running at the base station, users connected via GPON technology will have the Internet signal,” commented Sergiy Sukhoruk, Head of Fixed Line Communications.
About Kyivstar
Kyivstar is Ukraine’s largest electronic communications operator, serving more than 24 million mobile subscribers and more than 1.1 million Home Internet subscribers as of September 2023. The company provides services using a wide range of mobile and fixed technologies, including 4G, Big Data, Cloud solutions, cybersecurity services, digital TV, etc. Kyivstar helps subscribers, society and the country to overcome the challenges of wartime. Since the beginning of the full-scale war, the company has allocated more than UAH 1.4 billion in aid for the humanitarian needs of the Armed Forces, society and subscribers. Kyivstar’s sole shareholder is the international VEON Group (headquartered in the Netherlands). The Group’s shares are listed on NASDAQ (New York) and Euronext (Amsterdam). Kyivstar has been operating in Ukraine for 25 years and is recognized as the largest taxpayer in the telecom market, the best employer and a socially responsible company.
ENERGY INDEPENDENCE, GPON, Home Internet, INVESTMENTS, KYIVSTAR
In January this year, Ukrainian mining companies increased exports of iron ore in physical terms by 3.36 times compared to the same period last year, up to 3 million 115.839 thousand tons from 927.433 thousand tons.
According to the statistics released by the State Customs Service on Friday, during the period under review, foreign exchange earnings from the export of iron ore increased by 2.7 times to $295.989 million from 110.857 million.
Exports of iron ore were carried out mainly to China (48.05% of supplies in monetary terms), Slovakia (13.65%) and Poland (10.48%).
Last month, Ukraine imported iron ore worth $7 thousand in a total volume of 9 tons, while in January-2023 it imported iron ore worth $1 thousand in a volume of 1 thousand tons. Imports in January-2024 came from Italy (100%).
As reported, in 2023, Ukraine decreased exports of iron ore in physical terms by 26% compared to 2022 – to 17 million 753.165 thousand tons, foreign exchange earnings from iron ore exports amounted to $1 billion 766.906 million (down 39.3%). Iron ore was exported mainly to Slovakia (28.39% of supplies in monetary terms), the Czech Republic (19.74%) and Poland (19.56%).
Last year, Ukraine imported iron ore worth $135 thousand in the total amount of 250 tons. During this period, imports were made from Norway (34.81%), Italy (28.89%) and the Netherlands (28.89%). While in 2022, iron ore was imported for $65 thousand in a total volume of 101 tons.
In 2022, Ukraine decreased exports of iron ore in physical terms by 45.9% compared to 2021 – to 23 million 984.623 thousand tons, while foreign exchange earnings decreased by 57.8% to $2 billion 912.974 million. Iron ore was exported mainly to Slovakia (19.23% of supplies in monetary terms), the Czech Republic (17.32%) and Poland (16.49%).
In 2022, Ukraine imported iron ore worth $65 thousand in a total volume of 101 tons, while in 2021 – $184 thousand in a volume of 1,202 thousand tons. Imports were carried out from Norway (36.92%), the Netherlands (27.69%) and the UK (16.92%).
