In January–June 2026, Ukraine’s commercial fishermen caught more than 1.92 thousand metric tons of aquatic biological resources in inland waters, according to the press service of the State Agency for the Development of Land Reclamation, Fisheries, and Food Programs.
As is traditional, silver crucian carp accounted for the largest share of the catch—857 metric tons, or about 45% of the total.
In addition, 360 metric tons of bream, 139 metric tons of roach, 103 metric tons of Black Sea herring, 95 metric tons of flathead, 83 metric tons of herbivorous fish (silver carp and white amur), 66 metric tons of pikeperch, and 49 metric tons of perch were caught.
The State Fisheries Agency noted that due to the blockade of the Black and Azov Seas resulting from Russia’s military aggression, commercial fishing for most marine fish species has effectively ceased, so the main burden falls on inland waters.
The largest catch volumes in the first half of the year were recorded in the Kremenchuk Reservoir—over 536 metric tons. In the lower Dniester region, including the lakes, the Turunchuk branch, and the Dniester Estuary, 400 metric tons of aquatic biological resources were harvested; in the Kamyanske and Dnipro Reservoirs, 373 metric tons and 230 metric tons, respectively.
In addition, the catch in the Danube River totaled 105 metric tons; in the Kaniv Reservoir, 101 metric tons; in the Kyiv Reservoir, 71 metric tons; and in the Dnipro-Bug estuary system, 64 metric tons. In the waters of the Tiligul and Berezan estuaries, 17 metric tons and 15 metric tons of aquatic biological resources were caught, respectively. The lowest catch volumes were recorded in Chernihiv Oblast—5 metric tons in the Dnipro River and 3 metric tons in the Desna River, including lakes.
BIOLOGICAL RESOURCES, CATCH, crucian carp, FISH, State Fisheries Agency
According to The Serbian Economist, people in British politician Nigel Farage’s inner circle have developed significant business and political interests in Montenegro in recent years, a country that Prime Minister Milojko Spajić wants to promote as a hub for the crypto industry, the Financial Times reports.
According to the publication, several individuals linked to Farage and the Reform UK party have shown interest in Montenegro. Among them are crypto investor Christopher Harborn, former Reform UK treasurer Mehrtash Azami, Farage’s former communications director Hayward Taylor, and longtime adviser George Cottrell. The publication attributes their interest in the country to its low costs, favorable climate, supportive stance toward the crypto sector, and the political opportunities offered by this small Balkan economy.
Harborne, who had previously transferred 5 million pounds to Farage, registered the company Longevity Biotech Systems in Tivat in 2023, while Azami and Tauler also established business entities in that city. According to the publication, Cotrall has long been active in Montenegro through the consulting firm Geostrategy; his lawyers have denied allegations related to his alleged support of political campaigns in the country.
Montenegro has become particularly attractive to such players amid Prime Minister Milojko Spajić’s push to develop the crypto industry. Spajić has promoted the idea that cryptocurrency mining and trading could become a significant part of the country’s economy.
Interest in Montenegro is also growing due to its European prospects. The country applied for EU membership in 2008, received candidate status in 2010, and accession negotiations began in 2012. According to the Council of the EU, Montenegro has opened all 33 negotiation chapters and, as of mid-June 2026, has provisionally closed 16 of them, remaining the most advanced candidate for EU accession.
Nigel Farage is one of the most prominent British Euroskeptic politicians, the former leader of UKIP, and the current leader of Reform UK. For many years, he was one of the leading public advocates of Brexit. According to the official website of the British Parliament, Farage served as the Member of Parliament for the Clacton constituency from July 4, 2024, and left the House of Commons on July 8, 2026.
https://telegram.me/relocationrs/3226
“Ukrnafta” transferred another 1.43 billion hryvnia in dividends to the state budget.
Since the company came under state control, the total amount of dividends paid has already reached 16.73 billion UAH.
“Despite the widespread destruction of production infrastructure caused by Russian attacks, the need to restore and replace damaged equipment, as well as additional investments in facility security, “Ukrnafta” ensured stable transfers of a portion of its net profit to the state budget in 2025,” said Bohdan Kukura, Chairman of the Board of JSC “Ukrnafta.”
Currently, the intensity of shelling and destruction of the company’s production infrastructure and network of gas stations in frontline territories is increasing. Additional factors affecting the company’s financial condition include the global oil crisis, the need to import additional volumes of fuel in early 2026 to avoid a shortage of petroleum products in the country, and the obligation to allocate all domestically produced gas to meet the needs of the population.
Even under these conditions, the company maintains operational stability, continues production, supplies the country with high-quality fuel, invests in development, and fully fulfills its obligations to the state and local budgets.
JSC “Ukrnafta” is Ukraine’s largest oil producer and operates the country’s largest national network of gas stations—UKRNAFTA. In 2024, the company began managing Glusco’s assets. In 2025, it finalized an agreement with Shell Overseas Investments BV to acquire the Shell network in Ukraine. In total, it operates nearly 700 gas stations.
The company is implementing a comprehensive program to resume operations and modernize the format of the gas stations in its network. Since February 2023, it has been issuing its own fuel vouchers and “NAFTACard” cards, which are sold to legal entities and individuals through Ukrnafta-Postach LLC.
The largest shareholder of Ukrnafta is NAK Naftogaz of Ukraine, with a stake of 50% + 1 share.
In November 2022, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine decided to transfer to the state the portion of the company’s corporate rights that belonged to private owners; this portion is now managed by the Ministry of Defense.
State-owned PrivatBank has launched a large-scale media campaign titled “Do Something—Something Will Happen,” which will cover key communication channels, including radio, outdoor advertising, digital video platforms, social media—Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook—and banner networks, according to a statement posted Tuesday on the website of Ukraine’s largest financial institution.
“Our research and surveys show that during wartime, there’s no time to put things off until later; instead, we must live life to the fullest here and now, without waiting for a better time,” the release quotes Mikael Björkner, the bank’s chairman of the board, as saying.
“Whether it’s starting a business, raising a family, buying your first home, or spending more time with loved ones—we’re there for our customers through all these important moments,” he added.
It is noted that to launch the new branding campaign, PrivatBank created a music video featuring the artist thekomakoma, who is currently serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The campaign’s ambassadors include Amil and Ramil from Kurgan&Agregat, veteran Rusya Danilkina, representatives of the Ukrainian business community—Marchuk Khlib and Nick.sense—as well as the bank’s clients who are developing their own projects, running businesses, pursuing creative endeavors, or transforming the country, each in their own way.
The press release does not include information on the campaign’s cost.
PrivatBank is Ukraine’s largest bank. According to the National Bank, the financial institution’s total assets as of June 1, 2026, amounted to 965.11 billion UAH (22.7% of the total).
The state-owned bank noted that, according to regular Brand Health Tracking surveys for the first quarter of 2026, the level of trust in it is higher than that of other financial institutions on the market and stands at 49%. The bank attributes this to the availability of accessible, personalized, and digitized products for its customers.
The Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve held a ceremonial opening of the Far Caves for pilgrims and visitors.
According to a correspondent for the “Interfax-Ukraine” news agency, a prayer service for Ukraine was held at the Lavra on Tuesday morning, led by Metropolitan Epiphanius of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) with the participation of Bishop Abraham, the abbot of the Holy Dormition Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra of the OCU.
Afterward, the caves will be open to pilgrims and visitors.
It is noted that for the first month, access will be limited to believers, and starting approximately August 15, it will be open to all visitors.
“Not much time has passed since we all together opened the Near Caves. Today we are opening the Far Caves. And this demonstrates that our efforts are systematic. It is very important that the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra be a place that is open to Ukrainian believers, for Ukrainian pilgrims—a place where Ukrainian prayers and the Ukrainian Spiritual Hymn are heard, and where people feel themselves to be part of Ukraine’s cultural, religious, and national traditions,” said Tetyana Berezhna, Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Minister of Culture of Ukraine, at the opening ceremony.
The event was also attended by First Deputy Minister of Culture of Ukraine Ivan Verbytskyi, Director General of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve Maksym Ostapenko, Oleksandr Alferov, Head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Remembrance (UINR); Mykyta Poturaiev, Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Humanitarian and Information Policy (Servant of the People faction); People’s Deputy Mykola Knyazhitsky (“European Solidarity”); and representatives of the OCU, the Ministry of Culture, and the reserve.
The Far Caves are one of the oldest sacred sites of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. Together with the Near Caves, they form a unique system of man-made underground labyrinths, where the Kyiv-Pechersk Monastery was founded in the mid-11th century. Initially, the caves served as dwellings and places of prayer for the monks, and later became an underground necropolis.
As reported, on March 29, 2023, the “Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra” National Reserve terminated its lease agreement with the Holy Dormition Monastery of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate). On the same day, the Kyiv Economic Court opened proceedings on a lawsuit filed by the Holy Dormition Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra of the UOC (MP) against the “Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra” Reserve regarding the unlawful termination of the lease agreement, while the UOC (MP) itself stated that it had no intention of vacating the Lavra until the conclusion of the court proceedings. On August 9, 2023, the court ruled that the termination of the agreement between the UOC (MP) monastery and the “Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra” National Reserve was lawful. Appeals proceedings are currently underway.
In August 2023, the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra National Reserve temporarily suspended access to the Lower Lavra grounds for all visitors.
In February 2026, the reserve reopened access to the Near Caves, and in June, regular prayer services resumed in the Near Caves of the Lavra.
Airbnb is transitioning hosts to a new service fee model: instead of the previous structure, under which hosts typically paid about 3% and guests paid a separate service fee, the platform is introducing a single commission for hosts.
Now, most hosts will pay 15.5% of the booking price. Airbnb explains this as a move to make pricing more transparent: guests will see the total cost without a separate service fee on top.
For hosts, this means they’ll need to adjust their prices. If they don’t change their rates, their net payout will decrease. According to Airbnb’s example, for a $100 booking, a host will receive $84.50 after the commission is deducted.
The transition is taking place in phases. For hosts outside the European Economic Area, the deadline for adjusting prices is September 15; for hosts within the EEA, it is October 13.
For the short-term rental market, this will increase pressure on property owners and management companies: they will have to recalculate rates, discounts, and financial models.
