The global ranking of armed populations, compiled on the basis of the Small Arms Survey, shows that the ten countries with the largest number of civilian weapons include the United States, India, China, Pakistan, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Germany, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia. Ukraine is not on this list, but even before Russia’s full-scale invasion, the country was among the states with a significant amount of weapons in the hands of citizens. The Experts Club Analytical Center analyzed global and Ukrainian statistics.
According to the Small Arms Survey for 2017-18, there were about 4.4 million civilian weapons in Ukraine—approximately 9.9 guns per 100 inhabitants. Of these, only about 800,000 were officially registered, and about 3.6 million belonged to the illegal segment.
According to the National Police database, as of July 31, 2018, there were 892,854 registered weapons in the country. In 2021, the Ministry of Internal Affairs estimated the number of weapons legally owned by citizens at approximately 1.3 million, against the backdrop of tighter regulations and growing public interest in self-defense after 2014.
The full-scale war of 2022 dramatically changed the picture. Against the backdrop of the formation of territorial defense and volunteer units, the state massively transferred small arms to citizens; at the same time, a significant number of captured and illegal firearms ended up in the hands of the population. Estimates today vary widely: according to Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko, Ukrainians may have between 1 and 5 million weapons, while a number of think tanks put the figure at 4–5 million, of which 2–3 million may be in illegal circulation.
Research by Small Arms Survey using sociological surveys shows that up to 11% of Ukrainian households may have at least one weapon, which on a national scale gives a range of 865,000 to 1.42 million armed households. At the same time, the share of households that openly report the presence of weapons in 2023–2024 remains at 5–6%, which indicates both a high level of distrust and the sensitivity of the issue in wartime.
To bring order, Ukraine has launched a Unified Weapons Register. By July 2024, 63% of households that own weapons stated that some or all of their weapons were registered; among those who are aware of the system, 74% claim to have registered all their weapons, but about 10% continue to keep unregistered weapons.
Thus, while before the war there were approximately 1.3 million registered weapons in Ukraine and several times more illegal firearms, now, against the backdrop of full-scale hostilities, there are millions of weapons, a significant portion of which must gradually be registered or confiscated.
This makes the issue of civilian weapons control one of the key issues for post-war security, law enforcement reform, and Ukraine’s negotiations with the EU on the harmonization of weapons legislation.
Source: https://expertsclub.eu/ukrayina-na-tli-svitovogo-rynku-czyvilnoyi-zbroyi/
In the first three months of the 2025-2026 marketing year (September-November), Ukraine exported 116,100 tons of sugar, of which about 95% was sent to the world market, according to the National Association of Sugar Producers of Ukraine “Ukrtsukor.” According to the association, in September-November 2025, the following structure of Ukrainian sugar exports to the main buyer countries was formed:
Lebanon – 37% of the volume of supplies,
Syria – 18%,
North Macedonia – 8%,
Bosnia and Herzegovina – 7%,
United Arab Emirates – 7%.
Thus, the top five importers accounted for more than three-quarters of all sugar exports during the period. The remaining volumes were distributed among other countries in the Middle East, Africa, and selected European markets.
Ukrtsukor specified that as of the first ten days of November 2025, 26 sugar factories belonging to the association produced 880,000 tons of sugar, which is 100,000 tons, or 10.2%, less than on the same date in 2024.
Of the total exports in 2024/2025 MY, 17% went to EU countries and 83% to the global market, while in the previous season the ratio was 77% to the EU and 23% to other destinations.
According to industry estimates, the main buyers of Ukrainian sugar in 2024/2025 MY were the EU as a whole, Turkey, Libya, North Macedonia, Lebanon, and Somalia, with Bulgaria remaining the largest importer among EU countries.
In Ukraine, the area under potatoes in the 2025 season increased by 25% compared to last year, and thanks to favorable weather conditions, the yield was also a quarter higher, so it can be assumed that the harvest of Ukrainians’ second bread is 50% higher than last year, said Mykola Furdyga, director of the Potato Institute.
“It is very easy to calculate how much potatoes we produce. If the average farm price is 8 UAH/kg, and last year it was 20 UAH/kg, then I think we have 50% more production: production areas have expanded by 25% and the harvest has increased by 25% thanks to weather conditions,“ he said at the conference ”The state of development of the potato industry and the potential of processing enterprises in Volyn.”
Furdyga noted that Ukraine does not need such a volume of grown potatoes even in the case of deep processing (into chips and starch – IF-U).
Commenting on Ukraine’s import of more than 123,000 tons of potatoes in the 2024-2025 marketing year, the scientist explained that this record volume of sales abroad was caused by the unusual weather conditions of 2024 (Ukraine experienced a “record” drought – IF-U). Therefore, the state was forced to import potatoes to meet domestic food needs. European countries willingly supplied Ukraine with products due to their attractive price. At the same time, potatoes from Egypt did not dominate the market, but occupied their traditional niche in the off-season (February-March – IF-U), he noted.
In addition, Ukraine traditionally imports seed potatoes from leading breeding companies in the European Union, the director of the Potato Institute recalled.
Furdyga stated that since the beginning of the war, there has been a trend in Ukraine toward a reduction in potato cultivation in households and an expansion of production areas for this crop in farms and even in agricultural holdings. He explained this trend by the departure of the population from villages abroad and mobilization.
“For example, in Vinnytsia and Zhytomyr regions, there are villages where households used to plant 30 hectares of potatoes, and now if they plant 2 hectares, that’s still good,” he said, adding that potato cultivation is becoming unprofitable and labor-intensive for households.
Furdyga estimated the share of domestic potato varieties in national production at around 10-12%, given that they are mainly grown by small producers and households.
“Of course, we would like to have a larger market share, but this is the situation at the moment. I can only boast that in the 2025 season, domestic varieties were grown by the farms of Biotech Ltd. and Brovary Kartoplya Ltd. in the Kyiv region and STOV Desna in the Chernihiv region. In total, they propagated domestic varieties for further sale on an area of about 300 hectares,” said the director of the Potato Institute.
As reported, in 2024, due to unfavorable weather conditions and, in particular, drought, Ukraine’s potato harvest was 18% lower, i.e., by 4 million tons, to approximately 17.36 million tons, compared to 21.36 million tons in 2023.
In Germany, about one million people who have been rejected for asylum remain in the country, the Epoch Times reported. In most cases, these people are living in Germany illegally, waiting for appeals to be decided or facing deportation difficulties. The country’s authorities recognize the problem and are actively seeking ways to address it, but the deportation process is hampered by political, legal and humanitarian aspects.
The denial of asylum affects several categories of migrants. Among them are:
1) economic migrants – people who are seeking better living conditions but have no grounds for asylum by international standards,
2) non-status migrants – those who have no legal basis for staying in Germany, including tourists and people with expired visas,
3) refused status reviewers – migrants whose applications have been rejected but who continue to stay in the country by filing new appeals.
4) Refused deportees – people who have been denied asylum but are evading deportation, often using legal loopholes or for humanitarian reasons.
These are mainly citizens of Afghanistan, Turkey and Kosovo who are often denied asylum because they do not meet the criteria for refugee status. These countries are seen as safe, with low levels of violence or political persecution.
Also included in the refusals are people who have not proven to belong to vulnerable categories such as refugees from violence, persecution or war.
The issue is hotly debated in German society, and the authorities are taking steps to improve migration policy, including efforts to speed up deportation processes and reform the asylum system. However, political and humanitarian considerations continue to be major obstacles to an effective resolution.
According to Eurostat data on material deprivation in the “Housing in Europe – 2025 edition” review, around 9% of the European Union population in 2024 could not afford to heat their homes adequately.
The EU’s statistical office notes that the problem of energy poverty and high utility costs remains significant for millions of households, despite the support measures taken after the 2022–2023 energy crisis.
Low-income households and residents of old, energy-inefficient housing in a number of Eastern and Southern European countries remain particularly vulnerable.
According to the Serbian Economist, Serbia has not received a special license from the U.S. OFAC to continue the work of the company NIS, which has fallen under U.S. sanctions. This was announced by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. He also said that Serbia has decided to completely shut down the Pančevo refinery.
Since November 25, the NIS refinery has been operating in a reduced circulation mode due to a shortage of oil. Vucic noted that NIS will decide when to complete the shutdown of the refinery.
Earlier it was reported that the Serbian parliament is preparing an amendment that would allow Serbia to become the owner of NIS. A possible sale of 56.15% of NIS shares to Hungarian partners is also being considered.
NIS, a subsidiary of Gazprom Neft, was included in the US SDN List in 2025.
https://t.me/relocationrs/1865
