Starting July 1, 2026, the duties of General Director of the state-owned enterprise “Forests of Ukraine” will be entrusted to Igor Zubovich, head of the commission for the enterprise’s transformation, who served as Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture from August 2025 until early May, and prior to that, he served as head of the State Environmental Inspection of the Southwestern District and acting head of the Inspection.
As reported by the Ministry of Economy on its website on Wednesday, the relevant decision was made by the state enterprise’s supervisory board.
Currently, the head of “Forests of Ukraine” is Yuriy Bolokhovets, who has served as head since its establishment in May 2023, and following the decision to transform the state-owned enterprise into a joint-stock company, has been chairman of the transformation commission since September 2025. Prior to that, from 2021 to 2023, he was head of the State Agency of Forest Resources of Ukraine.
More than a third of new cancer cases worldwide are linked to risk factors that can be addressed through prevention, behavioral changes, medical interventions, and environmental policies, according to a WHO analysis published in Science Alert.
According to the analysis, nearly 19 million new cancer cases were recorded worldwide in 2022, of which about 38% were linked to 30 modifiable risk factors. These include smoking, alcohol consumption, high body mass index, insufficient physical activity, air pollution, ultraviolet radiation, certain infections, and occupational exposure to harmful substances.
Tobacco remains the leading preventable risk factor. Smoking was associated with approximately 15% of all new cancer cases in 2022. Among men, this figure was even higher: nearly one in four new cancer cases could be linked to smoking.
Alcohol consumption was the second most significant behavioral risk factor. Alcohol was associated with 3.2% of all new cancer cases, or approximately 700,000 diagnoses. Together, smoking and alcohol constitute the largest group of preventable cancer risks.
The authors of the analysis emphasize that this is not about a complete guarantee of preventing the disease, but about reducing the likelihood of its development. Cancer remains a complex group of diseases influenced by age, heredity, infections, the environment, and random biological processes. However, the proportion of factors related to lifestyle and the environment shows that prevention can be of great importance for public health.
The study pays particular attention to air pollution. In East Asia, about 15% of lung cancer cases in women are attributed specifically to air pollution, while in North Africa and West Asia, this figure reaches about 20% among men. This demonstrates that cancer prevention cannot be limited to individual habits alone—public policy, air quality, working conditions, and health regulations are also crucial.
Among preventable infectious factors, the human papillomavirus plays a significant role, as it can lead to cervical cancer. Therefore, vaccination, screening, and early diagnosis remain key tools for prevention, alongside quitting smoking and reducing alcohol consumption.
Thailand is tightening controls on foreigners who attempt to circumvent the ban on direct land ownership by using Thai nominee owners or specially created companies. Authorities are moving toward systematic inspections of land transactions, corporate structures, sources of financing, and actual control over real estate.
According to market operators, special inspection committees are being established in every province of the country, comprising representatives from land authorities, the police, the tax service, and other agencies. Their task is to identify schemes in which a foreign buyer effectively controls a land plot but formally registers it in the name of a Thai individual or a company with Thai shareholders.
Legal consultants in Thailand also note that starting in 2026, controls will be tightened regarding company registration and land transactions. The Department of Business Development requires confirmation of the actual source of funds and investment declarations when establishing or amending companies, while the Department of Land Resources cross-checks corporate data against land titles.
The focus is on so-called nominee structures, where Thai citizens or companies act as nominal owners of land on behalf of a foreigner. Thai law generally prohibits foreigners from directly owning land, although foreigners may own condominium units within established quotas, enter into long-term land leases, or own a building separately from the land.
The new checks will apply not only to future transactions but also to existing arrangements. Authorities intend to analyze the source of funds, the composition of shareholders, the family and business ties of the parties, the actual use of the land, as well as signs that the Thai nominee owner has no independent economic interest in the property.
For foreign buyers, this means a sharp increase in legal risks. The use of Thai nominee shareholders or fictitious structures may lead to criminal prosecution, liquidation of the company, forced sale of the land, and loss of control over the asset. Lawyers advise investors to review old ownership structures and bring them into compliance with the law in advance.
This is particularly important for Thailand’s real estate market amid growing foreign demand. In recent years, foreign buyers—including investors from Russia, China, Europe, and the Middle East—have shown strong interest in properties in Phuket, Bangkok, Pattaya, Samui, and other tourist destinations. Part of the demand has been for villas and land plots, where legal restrictions are significantly stricter than in the apartment segment.
Tighter controls could cool some villa and land transactions, especially if they were based on informal agreements with nominal owners. At the same time, this could increase demand for more transparent formats—such as purchasing condominium units within the foreign quota, long-term land leases, officially structured investments, and projects with legally verified ownership models.
Freight transport volume in January–April 2026 increased by 5% compared to the same period in 2025, reaching 104.4 million tons, while passenger transport decreased by 7% to 658.8 million passengers, the State Statistics Service reported on Tuesday.
According to its data, 47.9 million tons of cargo were transported by rail in the first four months of 2026, which is 1.7% more than in the same period last year, while freight turnover fell by 8.7% to 28.5 billion ton-kilometers.
Road transport volumes for January–April 2026 increased by 18.1% to 45.9 million tons, while freight turnover rose by 9% to 13.9 billion ton-kilometers.
The largest number of passengers in January–April 2026 was transported by road—315.1 million, which is also 3.8% more than in the same period of 2025.
A 3.2% increase was also recorded in the metro—to 108.6 million.
At the same time, the number of passengers carried by rail decreased by 13.8%—to 16.9 million, by trams—by 28.4%, to 72.1 million, and by trolleybuses—by 18.5%, to 145.9 million.
As reported, freight traffic in January–March 2026 decreased by 0.3% compared to the same period in 2025—to 76.1 million tons, while passenger traffic fell by 8.6%—to 478.5 million people.
Kyivstar, Ukraine’s largest mobile operator, announced the acquisition of six solar power plants (SPPs) with a total installed capacity of 105 MW in Lviv Oblast for 3.6 billion UAH, or $80.8 million, according to a company statement on Tuesday.
“Renewable energy is one of the key areas of Kyivstar’s investment portfolio, as it opens up opportunities for the further use of ‘green’ electricity to cover part of the company’s energy needs,” Kyivstar CEO and President Oleksandr Komarov is quoted as saying in the release.
Taking into account the initial purchase last December of the 13-MW “Sunwin 11” solar power plant for $3 million in the Zhytomyr region, Kyivstar’s total “green” generation capacity has grown to 118 MW, enabling the company to generate electricity equivalent to approximately 30% of its current annual consumption, the press release states.
“Electricity from the acquired solar power plant group will be fed into Ukraine’s unified power grid in accordance with current market and regulatory rules, which will allow Kyivstar to partially hedge against risks associated with fluctuations in electricity prices,” Kyivstar explained.
The mobile operator noted that these “green” projects also enable it to build a long-term energy consumption model, strengthen the country’s energy sector, and align with sustainable development goals.
“Kyivstar will continue to invest in initiatives that combine technological efficiency, compliance with ESG principles, and support for the Ukrainian economy,” the company noted.
As reported, in March of this year, Kyivstar received approval from the AMCU to purchase six solar power plants in the Lviv region: Energo-Postach-Plus LLC, Lightful, Sunlight Generation, Ternovytsia Solar, Energy Space, and Ternovytsia Solar Plus.
In the first quarter of 2026, Kyivstar increased its EBITDA by 28.5% to UAH 7.5 billion, while revenue grew by 31.3% to UAH 13.9 billion.
In 2025, the Kyivstar Group increased its EBITDA by 30% to UAH 27 billion, with revenue growing by 30.3% to UAH 48.2 billion. In particular, in the fourth quarter of last year, EBITDA increased by 23.1% to UAH 7.2 billion, with revenue growing by 30.1% to UAH 13.5 billion.
Poland’s largest marketplace, Allegro, plans from June of this year to introduce delivery from Polish sellers on the platform to Ukraine, and in the future to create a separate Allegro.ua platform for Ukrainian companies, according to a report by the Polish publication Wiadomosci Handlowe, citing sources.
“We are observing a clear growth trend in cross-border e-commerce and growing interest from foreign customers, including from Ukraine. In order to support our partners even more effectively in their regional expansion, we are now introducing the first phase of a new delivery method — Allegro International Ukraina,” the article says.
It is noted that at the first stage of launching delivery to Ukraine, several hundred sellers from Poland will be included in the program.
“As part of the next stage, Allegro will open up to a wider circle of Polish sellers who want to reach customers living in Ukraine,” the publication explains.
According to Wiadomosci Handlowe, Allegro’s integration with Ukrainian sellers may take place as early as 2027.
“This would be a turning point and at the same time proof that Allegro intends to seriously compete with marketplaces operating in Ukraine, such as Rozetka,” Wiadomosci Handlowe noted.
Overall, the marketplace is now at the stage of preparing to launch the new direction, in particular attracting partners and providing them with technical and operational support.
It is also specified that the delivery of parcels from Polish sellers to Ukrainian customers will be carried out by Nova Post.
Allegro is the largest marketplace in Poland, which also operates in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia and Slovenia.
In 2021, the company announced the acquisition of the Czech e-commerce group Mall Group and the logistics company WE|DO. The corresponding transaction was completed in April 2022, which allowed the marketplace to enter the markets of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia and Slovenia.
