Mubadala, the investment fund of the United Arab Emirates, has signed memorandums of understanding with 18 Ukrainian companies, in particular with EastOne represented by Rodion Kukhaev, Interpipe represented by Denys Morozov, UFuture represented by Mykola Tymoschuk, Unit.City represented by Kostiantyn Yevtushenko, Dragon Capital represented by Andriy Nosok, Fortior represented by Mykola Nesterenko and UMG represented by Andriy Horokhov.
“Mubadala has also signed a number of other memorandums of understanding with private companies that aim to explore investment opportunities in the private sector in Ukraine,” the investment fund said in a release.
According to its data, earlier Mubadala fund also signed memorandums of understanding with other Ukrainian companies, including TAS Group, BGV, Horizon, OdesaGaz, Epicenter, Oschadbank, Mais and Metinvest, which together with DTEK and UMG are part of the assets of SCM Group.
Adviser to the head of the President’s Office Tymofiy Mylovanov said that Mubadala expects to close the first investment by the end of 2021.
“The average ticket (investment amount) of Mubadala is $ 50-100 million,” he wrote on Facebook, pointing out that the estimated investment amount could thus reach $ 1.8 billion.
“The creation of a sovereign fund of Ukraine for joint investments with this and other funds of the UAE and other countries was discussed,” he added.
According to him, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy also signed a memorandum on the creation of a trading company and an agricultural hub.
“Meetings and consultations on specific agreements with other state funds of the UAE are underway,” Mylovanov said.
Quotes of interbank currency market of Ukraine (UAH for €1, IN 04.01.2021-29.01.2021).
NBU
The deficit of Ukraine’s foreign trade in goods in 2020 decreased by 54.6% compared to 2019 and amounted to $4.878 billion (in 2019 some $10.746 billion), the State Statistics Service has reported.
In 2020, export of goods compared to 2019 decreased by 1.7% (by $847 million), amounting to $49.213 billion, import by 11% (by $6.692 billion), to $54.091 billion.
The coverage of imports by exports was 0.91 (in 2019 some 0.82).
The seasonally adjusted exports of goods in December 2020 compared to November increased by 3.3%, imports – by 3.7%. The seasonally adjusted foreign trade balance in December 2020 was negative and amounted to $499 million. In November 2020, it was also negative at $465 million.
The State Statistics Service specified that foreign trade operations were carried out with partners from 234 countries of the world.
Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates have signed memorandums and contracts worth $3 billion or more, the presidential press service said. “As part of the official visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to the United Arab Emirates, the Ukrainian delegation signed a number of memorandums and contracts totaling $3 billion or more,” the press service said in the statement.
In particular, memorandums of understanding were signed between the State Property Fund of Ukraine and the Mubadala investment company. They are aimed at deepening cooperation in the development of promising investment projects and the participation of the Emirate side in the program of privatization of state-owned property in Ukraine.
“At all international meetings, I urge to invest in Ukraine. Our state has enormous potential: geopolitical position, natural resources, people of knowledge. Right now is the time to understand this potential and create a strong economy,” Zelensky said.
He said that attracting investment is the key to Ukraine’s economic growth. “The signing of a memorandum with the Mubadala investment company of the government of Abu Dhabi on intentions to invest in Ukraine is a very important step in opening the way for major investments in Ukraine from Western Asia,” Zelensky said.
In addition, the Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine signed a memorandum with INTELMAX Management Consulting, which provides for cooperation on the creation of a platform for the exchange of intellectual property based on the Fantom blockchain, which will provide increased security and transparency. It is also planned to introduce blockchain technologies into government processes and services.
The sides also signed documents in the defense sector, discussing the possibility of constructing joint factories outside Ukraine.
As the President’s Office said, the possibility of opening a Ukrainian sovereign fund for joint investments is also being considered.
“Along with this, some 18 Ukrainian private companies, including Interpipe, Dragon Capital, DTEK, Unit City, EastOne, UMG, Ufuture, Fortior, signed memorandums with the Mubadala state investment fund,” the President’s Office said.
The Filatov Institute of Eye Diseases and Tissue Therapy of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine (Odesa) for the first time in the world conducted a unique operation to remove a large intraocular hemangioma of the choroid.
According to a press release of the institute, the operation was performed at the end of 2020 on a 21-year-old patient due to the impossibility of using non-surgical methods of treatment because of the large tumor size (12.2 mm x 16.1 mm, bulging into the vitreous humor – 6 mm), which continued to grow.
“Understanding what the loss of an eye would mean for a young active girl, both from a cosmetic and psychological point of view, the doctors of the Filatov Institute offered the patient an operation,” the press release said.
To reduce the risk of bleeding, the specialists of the institute used their unique development – the method of high-frequency welding of biological tissues in ophthalmology, developed jointly with the Paton Institute of Electric Welding of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. They also developed the tools necessary for the interventions.
The operation was carried out by one of the authors of the method, Doctor of Medical Sciences Mykola Umanets. During the operation, which lasted several hours, each dissected vessel was “welded” to prevent bleeding.
“When the patient came for a check-up a month later, the doctors were not only convinced that they had managed to save the eye, but also revealed the appearance of her “silhouette vision,” which was not there before the operation,” the press release said.
At present, the institute’s specialists are preparing publications for world-famous ophthalmological editions. The video filming made during the operation will allow presenting a unique achievement at the world conferences and congresses.
Hemangioma is benign neoplasms that affect the blood vessels of a person in various parts of the body. In the case of formation in the choroid of the eye, they do not threaten the patient’s life, however, they are accompanied by a significant decrease in vision and can cause the development of serious complications, such as retinal detachment, hemorrhage into the eye cavity, increased intraocular pressure (glaucoma).
Currently, there are a number of treatment methods for this pathology, aimed at stopping the growth and destruction of the tumor and are effective in the case of small formations. The only attempt to surgically remove an intraocular hemangioma recorded by the world ophthalmological community is an operation performed in 2019 by Italian ophthalmologist Barbara Parolini. In that case, the tumor was small. In the case of a large lesion and/or its unsuccessful location, surgical removal of intraocular hemangiomas is not performed due to a very high risk of bleeding and a lack of effective methods to stop it. Most often, the only way to solve the problem is to remove the eye.