According to Serbian Economist, Azerbaijan has expressed its readiness to assist Montenegro in connecting to the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), said Dino Tutundzic, State Secretary of the Ministry of Energy and Mining of Montenegro, in an interview with Report.az. According to him, Podgorica considers the Ionian-Adriatic Pipeline (IAP) to be a strategic regional project that should connect Montenegro to TAP and, through it, to the Southern Gas Corridor and Caspian supplies.
Tutundzic said that Montenegro plans to intensify negotiations with neighboring countries – Croatia and Albania – and focus on preparing the infrastructure base, after which it will be possible to talk about gas delivery to end consumers. He also noted Azerbaijan’s interest in participating in Montenegro’s energy projects, including in the renewable energy segment.
The issue of connecting Montenegro to TAP has its own specific features: the country still makes virtually no use of natural gas, as it has no gas market or gas distribution network. This is evident from the report of the Energy Community Secretariat, which explicitly states that “there is no gas market in Montenegro” and “there is no gas network.”
TAP is part of the Southern Gas Corridor, connecting supplies from the Caspian region to European markets via Greece, Albania, and the Adriatic Sea, with access to Italy.
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Kovlar Group, a manufacturer of passive fire protection products in Ukraine, is studying the European market but focusing on creating products for the domestic market, said Konstantin Kalafat, director of Kovlar Group LLC, in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
“We are actively studying the European market and working on harmonizing technical documentation and conformity assessment procedures. As for exports, this is a challenge, because the European market for niche products such as ours is already established, and consumers prefer more stable solutions when it comes to safety, so it is difficult to find customers,” he said.
According to him, the main obstacle to rapid entry into EU markets is currently the complexity of certification procedures in the context of the war—foreign auditors and technical experts are not always able to come to Ukraine to conduct the necessary audits and technical inspections. However, entry into European markets remains part of the company’s strategic plans.
At the same time, Kovlar Group’s products are competitive in terms of quality and cost. “Fire protection is a high-tech and knowledge-intensive industry where proven characteristics are crucial. Over the past 10 years, the requirements for thin-layer fire protection coatings have doubled due to the need to ensure the stability of metal structures during a fire – from 90 to 180 minutes, and we are trying to keep up with this trend. In terms of certain parameters – system efficiency, optimal layer thickness, and stability of results – some of our solutions are on par with, and sometimes even surpass, their European counterparts,” Kalafat emphasized.
Currently, the company’s priority is the domestic market, especially given the growing demand for Ukrainian materials in connection with large-scale restoration and reconstruction programs.
“In this context, our advantage over imports is obvious: short logistics, prompt delivery, the ability to quickly respond to changes in project decisions, instantly provide technical advice, and visit sites. During wartime and the post-war period, the speed of engineering decisions and stability of supply are often critical.
We hope that with the end of military risks, the quality of the implemented projects will become an additional argument for the effective realization of the export potential of Ukrainian passive fire protection systems,” he says. Kovlar Group LLC was founded in 2015 in Kyiv and is the largest manufacturer of passive fire protection equipment in Ukraine.
According to OpenDataBot, the company’s authorized capital is UAH 1.2 million, and its ultimate beneficiaries are Kostyantyn Kalafat (40%), Andriy Ozeychuk (35%), and Lyubov Vakhitova (25%). The company’s revenue for 2024 was UAH 91.3705 million, which is twice as much as in 2023, and its net profit was UAH 13.4 million, which is 1.7 times more than in 2023. In the first quarter of 2025, the company’s revenue was UAH 13.5 million, with a net income of UAH 1,983,000.
According to the results of 2025, Ukraine provided domestic exporters of animal and plant products with access to 22 new foreign markets, said Serhiy Tkachuk, head of the State Service for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, during a public report on Thursday.
According to him, this figure is a record for the period of full-scale war.
“Last year, we opened 22 new export markets. Currently, work is underway to open about 300 more. It does not stop there, because it is our priority to ensure that small, medium, and large Ukrainian businesses have the opportunity to export their products worldwide,” emphasized the head of the State Service.
According to the data presented, in 2025, the Chinese market opened up to Ukrainian peas, wild-caught seafood, and aquatic products. India and Canada allowed the import of Ukrainian apples. Canada also opened its market to table eggs.
“Each new certificate is the result of lengthy technical negotiations and audits. For example, opening up markets in countries such as Canada or China requires strict adherence to high safety standards,” added Tkachuk.
In addition, the Albanian market became accessible for table eggs, Argentina for sunflower seeds, and Kuwait for processed food products. Malaysia has opened access for milk, dairy, and egg products. Vietnam and Moldova have allowed the import of dairy products not intended for human consumption. The Chilean market has opened up for meat and bone meal and feather meal, and Turkey for canned animal feed.
Tkachuk noted that since 2022, Ukraine has managed to open a total of 75 new markets, despite logistical and political challenges.
“Even in the conditions of war, we continue to expand our geography. Currently, Ukraine has the right to export agricultural products to 386 trade destinations,” he specified.
The State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection is currently exploring opportunities to access markets in Asia, the EU, America, and the Middle East. In particular, work is underway to open the Canadian market for Ukrainian wheat, corn, soybeans, and rapeseed, as well as to expand the presence of plant products in China.
Arsen Didur, executive director of the Ukrainian Dairy Industry Association (SMU) and deputy of the Chernihiv Regional Council, and his wife Natalya Didur have completely withdrawn from the shareholder structure of Kulikovskoe Moloko PJSC (Chernihiv region), selling their shares to manager Anastasia Churikova.
According to the issuer’s report in the NSSMC information disclosure system, information about the change in ownership of the shares was received on March 3, 2026.
Churikova directly acquired two blocks of shares (400,978 and 182,102 shares), which together amount to 583,080 ordinary registered shares of the company (48.9983%). Prior to this, she did not own any shares in the company.
At the same time, Arsen Didur, who previously owned 15.3027% of the shares (182,102 shares), and Natalia Didur, whose share was 33.6956% (400,978 shares), completely withdrew from the list of shareholders. The agreements for the transfer of the shares were concluded on February 27, 2026.
According to Opendatabot, the new shareholder was previously integrated into the business structures of the majority owner of Kulikovskoe Molochnoe PJSC, Igor Rzhavichev (who owns 51% of the shares). In particular, from June 2024 to May 2025, Churikova headed RZHL LLC (Cherkasy), controlled by Rzhavichev, which specializes in freight transport and wholesale trade in dairy products.
Kulikovskoe Milk PJSC (Kulikovka, Chernihiv region) was founded in February 1999. The company specializes in milk processing, butter and cheese production, and is also engaged in the wholesale trade of more than 30 types of dairy products, eggs, edible oils, and fuel.
According to Opendatabot, in 2025, the company’s net profit decreased by 21.7% compared to 2024, to UAH 1.77 million. The company’s revenue for the past year amounted to UAH 181.35 million, which is 8.21% less than in 2024 (UAH 197.567 million). The company’s assets in 2025 grew by 12.1% to UAH 98.601 million, while liabilities increased by 13.2% to UAH 76.513 million. The authorized capital of the private joint-stock company is UAH 5.95 million.
The number of employees at the company in 2025 decreased to 71 (compared to 95 in 2024), while the average salary increased 2.5 times to UAH 17,160.
China has announced plans to invest 300 billion yuan ($44 billion) in state-owned banks this year to protect against systemic risks and increase funding for technology companies.
These measures were outlined in the annual government work report presented at the opening of the National People’s Congress (NPC) session.
It states that Beijing will continue to replenish the capital of financial institutions and prudently dispose of non-performing assets in this sector. The authorities also plan to regulate competition between financial companies and promote consolidation among small and medium-sized local financial institutions.
The government announced the creation of an additional fund of 100 billion yuan to stimulate domestic demand through measures such as subsidizing interest rates on loans, financing guarantees, and risk compensation.
Beijing has also promised to continue to combat “risks arising in the real estate sector, local government debt, and small and medium-sized local financial institutions.”
According to Western media reports, the country’s authorities are likely to replenish the capital of the Industrial & Commercial Bank of China and the Agricultural Bank of China this year. They were not included in a similar program last year, when the capital of four other major banks was increased by $69 billion.
The most popular holidays in Ukraine remain Easter and Christmas, which are celebrated by 67% and 66% of Ukrainians, followed by Ukraine’s Independence Day (54%) and Defenders of Ukraine Day (53%), according to the results of a study entitled “Ukrainians’ attitudes towards public holidays, particularly March 8,” conducted on January 9-14 by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS).
New Year’s Day is traditionally popular among Ukrainians, but previously its popularity was the same as that of Christmas (about 80%), and now it is 40%. Next are Ukraine’s Constitution Day (28%), Trinity Sunday (27%), and International Women’s Day (24%). Victory Day (11%) and Labor Day (May 1) (5%) complete the list.
It is noted that the popularity of International Women’s Day (March 8) had previously been steadily declining, from 49% in 2017 to 21% in 2024 . However, in 2026, a slight increase to 24% was recorded, which may indicate a certain stabilization of attitudes towards the holiday after a period of sharp decline.
In western Ukraine, the popularity of March 8 is the lowest (18%), in the center it is approximately the same (22%), while in the south and east it is 33%. Gender and age do not have a significant impact on attitudes towards this holiday, but it is slightly more popular among men (26% versus 20% among women), whereas in previous years it was twice as popular among women.
The popularity of Easter, Christmas, and New Year’s has been declining since 2013, when it was around 80%, but during the full-scale invasion by the Russian Federation, it has stabilized or is declining slowly. The popularity of March 8, Trinity Sunday, Victory Day, and Labor Day has also stabilized after declining. The popularity of Independence Day has grown throughout the war from 12% to 64% at the start of the full-scale invasion, but then declined slightly.
The popularity of Defenders’ Day, on the contrary, increased during the full-scale invasion and also stabilized. The same applies to Constitution Day, but in 2025 its support fell sharply to 18%, although this year it rose again to its previous level (28%).
In general, Ukrainians treat holidays with love and respect, with only 2% of respondents not considering any official holidays to be important or favorite, according to KIIS.
The press release notes that the decline in the popularity of religious holidays does not mean a loss of significance, but rather reflects conflicts surrounding the country’s religious life, along with a decline in trust in the Church as an institution, as well as a general erosion of the festive intensity in the context of prolonged war.
“We see a sharp increase in the role of public holidays, the emergence of a new central holiday – Defenders’ Day, a significant decline in Soviet holidays, and the preservation of religious holidays as a cultural core. Over these 13 years, there has been not just a change in the ratings of individual holidays, but a profound transformation of the symbolic structure of Ukrainian identity,” the Institute said in a comment.
The survey was conducted using telephone interviews (CATI) based on a random sample of mobile phone numbers in all government-controlled regions among 601 respondents aged 18 and older. Formally, under normal circumstances, the statistical error of such a sample (with a probability of 0.95 and taking into account the design effect of 1.3) did not exceed 5.3% for indicators close to 50% and 2.4% for indicators close to 5%. Under wartime conditions, a certain systematic deviation is added to the specified formal error, but the results obtained still remain highly representative.
