Ukrainians do not see obvious leaders among candidates for the post of Ukraine’s president, and the rating of major politicians is rather low, according to a nationwide poll conducted by the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation in May 2018. According to the results of the survey that were made public at a press conference in Kyiv, Batkivschyna Party leader Yulia Tymoshenko (13.3%) has greatest support among the respondents who plan to take part in the elections, while the level of her support differs little depending on the regions. Civil Position Party leader Anatoliy Hrytsenko (9.4% of respondents) is in second place, enjoying the highest rating in the western and central regions of the country. A co-chairman of the Opposition Bloc faction, Yuriy Boiko (8.4%), is in third place, and he is mostly supported in the eastern, southern regions and Donbas.
The rating of incumbent head of state Petro Poroshenko is somewhat higher in the west of the country and lower in the east and stands at 7.6%. Some 7.4% of respondents would vote for Radical Party leader Oleh Liashko. His positions, according to the survey, are somewhat stronger in the central and southern regions of Ukraine.
According to the survey, the majority of Ukrainian citizens (68%) plan to take part in presidential elections, while 17% definitely do not want to do it, and the rest were undecided.
The survey was conducted by the Ilko Kucheriv Democratic Initiatives Foundation together with the sociological service of the Razumkov Center from May 19 to May 25, 2018 in all regions of Ukraine, except for Crimea and occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. A total of 2,019 respondents aged over 18 years were interviewed. The poll’s margin of error does not exceed 2.3%.
General Electric Transportation with 10% participation of Kriukov Car Building Works (KCBW) at the end of 2018 will start delivering 30 TE33A locomotives of Evolution series to Ukrzaliznytsia in line with the earlier approved program of localization of locomotive production in Ukraine, acting Ukrzaliznytsia Board Chairman Yevhen Kravtsov wrote on his Facebook page on Tuesday. “Ukrzaliznytsia jointly with GE Transportation gives green light to the program of localization of locomotive production in Ukraine. Personally for me this is a large victory and the landmark for Ukrainian railways and the entire sector. Localization at the initial stages was the key principal moment during the negotiations with GE. I can say that neither in India nor in Kazakhstan the similar contract does not envisages the localization from the first sample. First TE33A locomotives of the Evolution series will be made with participation of KCBW,” he said.
Kravtsov said that for the first locomotives the Ukrainian contract provides for 10% of localization. Later the locomotives will be consisted of at least 40% of Ukrainian spare parts.
“Now General Electric is selecting the production facilities among Ukrainian enterprises. We also plan to create a center for servicing and modernizing the operating locomotive fleet,” Kravtsov wrote.
He said that a batch of locomotives, which General Electric will deliver in cooperation with KCBW is the largest one during Ukraine’s independence. “The final stage of locomotive production for Ukrzaliznytsia has started in Pennsylvania. At the end of 2018 we would receive first diesel locomotives adapted to our climate, environment-friendly, effective in servicing, comfortable and safe for locomotive crews,” Kravtsov said.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko will meet with Hereditary Prince of Liechtenstein Alois on Wednesday. The prince is on an official visit to Ukraine at the invitation of the head of state. “During the talks, they plan to discuss the intensification of Ukrainian-Liechtenstein political dialogue, Liechtenstein’s support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, as well as the intensification of trade and economic cooperation, taking into account free trade opportunities as part of the European Free Trade Association,” the presidential press service said.
The prince will also visit Lviv. “This visit will be the first visit by a high representative of Liechtenstein since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two states,” the report said.
Bravo Airways will launch regular flights to Lublin from Kyiv, Kharkiv and Kherson from June 15, 2018. “We open new flights to Lublin from June 15, which will allow in 1.5 hours safely, comfortably and without changing to get from the airports of Kyiv, Kherson and Kharkiv to Lublin and back,” the airline said on Facebook.
The cost of flights starts from UAH 1,300. The fare also includes transportation of hand luggage and the ability to carry up to 23 kg of luggage free of charge. Regular flights will be available to both directions three times a week from Kyiv and Kherson and twice from Kharkiv.
As reported, earlier Bravo Airways launched charter flights from Kherson to Dalaman (Turkey). Bravo Airways was founded in April 2012. Its core business is passenger transportation on regular and charter routes. Since its founding, Bravo Airways has transported more than 500,000 passengers. The aircraft of the airline are based at Kyiv Zhuliany International Airport.
