Imports of trucks to Ukraine in January-September 2025 grew by 11.6% in monetary terms compared to the same period in 2024, reaching $740.18 million, according to statistics from the State Customs Service.
According to the published data, the growth rate of imports of this type of vehicle accelerated, in particular, in the first half of the year, it amounted to 6.2% compared to the same period in 2024.
In September, truck imports increased by 32.7% compared to September 2024, reaching $105.8 million.
Most of the trucks were imported from Poland in the first nine months, accounting for $141.12 million (19% of the total), followed by France with $115 million (15.5%) and the United States with $102.4 million (13.8%).
A year ago, the top three truck supplier countries were the same, with Poland importing $137.8 million, France $78.3 million, and the US $66.2 million.
Imports from all other countries increased slightly in January-September, amounting to $381.7 million.
At the same time, according to statistics, Ukraine exported only $4.4 million worth of trucks in nine months, mainly to Turkey (52.7% of exports), Romania (41%), and Moldova, while a year earlier there were even more insignificant export deliveries ($2.4 million), mainly to Moldova, Poland, and Kazakhstan.
As reported, in 2024, imports of trucks to Ukraine in monetary terms increased by 30% compared to 2023, to $947.84 million, with most of them imported from Poland (almost 20%).
The level of sympathy for France among Ukrainians remains high. This is evidenced by the results of an all-Ukrainian sociological survey conducted by Active Group in cooperation with the Experts Club information and analytical center in August 2025.
According to the survey, 75.0% of Ukrainian citizens have a positive attitude toward France (49.3% are mostly positive, 25.7% are completely positive). Only 4.0% of respondents have a negative perception of this country (3 . 0% – mostly negative, 1.0% – completely negative). Another 20.0% remain neutral, and 1.3% said they do not have enough information about France.
“For many Ukrainians, France is a symbol of support in difficult times, as well as a cultural and political reference point in Europe. Such indicators demonstrate high trust and respect, which is largely due to the active role of Paris in European policy towards Ukraine,” said Oleksandr Poznyi, co-founder of Active Group.
In his turn, Maxim Urakin, founder of Experts Club, emphasized the importance of France in economic cooperation.
“In the first half of 2025, the trade turnover between Ukraine and France amounted to more than $1.37 billion. At the same time, exports of Ukrainian goods amounted to only $395.6 million, while imports from France reached $979.4 million. The negative balance of more than $583 million indicates a significant dependence of our market on French goods, but also the importance of France as an economic partner,” he said.
The survey is part of a broader research program that analyzes international sympathies and antipathies of Ukrainians in the current geopolitical context.
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ACTIVE GROUP, DIPLOMACY, EXPERTS CLUB, FRANCE, Poznyi, SOCIOLOGY, TRADE, URAKIN
Denmark and Germany have agreed to participate in the new format of arms supplies to Kyiv proposed by US President Donald Trump, while France, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Hungary have refused, Western media reported on Wednesday.
In addition, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that Europe increasingly feels the need to end its dependence on US weapons.
“Europe is heavily dependent on the US defense industry. However, due to trade tariffs, President Trump’s attitude toward NATO and his lack of commitment to defending the alliance’s countries, European countries will increasingly prioritize investments in their own defense systems,” the agency’s sources said.
According to the European portal Politico, France has refused to participate in the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine. The publication’s sources said that instead, the government intends to focus on increasing its own defense budget, which President Emmanuel Macron promised last weekend to almost double by 2027 compared to the 2017 budget.
In addition, Paris wants to support European manufacturers who previously supplied Ukraine with anti-missile systems and other weapons.
Italy also has no plans to purchase weapons from the US for delivery to Ukraine, but will continue to provide military assistance to Kyiv. Unnamed representatives of the Ministry of Defense told the newspaper La Stampa that there had never been any talks about purchasing American weapons for Kyiv.
In addition, the newspaper notes that Italy does not have the funds to carry out operations of this kind. According to the newspaper’s sources, the problem is so acute that the only purchase from the US planned by Italy for the next ten years is a batch of F-35 fighter jets for its own needs.
The Czech government, in turn, said that military aid to Kyiv would continue, but through participation in other initiatives and purchases from Czech, not American, manufacturers.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said that Budapest does not intend to participate in the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine.
Berlin and Copenhagen have so far given their official consent to purchase weapons from the US. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Rasmussen said he was fully prepared to join the funding.
The Dutch Foreign Ministry, in turn, said it was considering participating in the program. However, despite the government’s positive assessment of the initiative, Amsterdam has not yet confirmed its commitment to direct participation.
According to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom are also expected to join the funding.
On July 11, Trump announced that US NATO allies would purchase weapons from Washington, which could then be transferred to Ukraine.
During a press conference with Trump on Monday, Rutte called it “logical” that European countries would pay for US arms deliveries to Ukraine.
European diplomacy chief Kaja Kallas said on Tuesday that EU countries would prefer Washington to provide part of its military aid to Ukraine free of charge. “If we pay for these weapons, it means that we, not the US, are providing this military aid,” Callas said at a press conference in Brussels. She stressed that Brussels “would like to see these costs shared.”
Ukrainian producers exported 66,700 tons of wheat flour during the 2024-2025 marketing year (July-June), which is 27.9% less than in the previous season, when this figure was 92,500 tons, according to the Ukrainian Flour Millers Association.
The industry association noted that about 46% of exports in the 2024/2025 season went to EU countries. The top five importers of Ukrainian flour were Moldova (20,300 tons), the Czech Republic (15,300 tons), Palestine (10,800 tons), France (3,000 tons), and Spain (2,900 tons).
Exports of other types of flour in the 2024/2025 season amounted to 4.6 thousand tons (in 2023/24 MY – 5.4 thousand tons). The share of EU countries in terms of export volumes was 14% (27% in 2023/2024 MY). The five countries to which other types of flour were supplied in 2024/25 MY were Moldova (3.2 thousand tons), Israel (0.5 thousand tons), Croatia (0.2 thousand tons), Bulgaria, and Spain (0.1 thousand tons each).
CZECH REPUBLIC, FLOUR, FRANCE, IMPORTER, MOLDOVA, PALESTINE, SPAIN
Support is lowest in France, Spain and Poland, while 21% back authoritarian rule under certain circumstances
Only half of young people in France and Spain believe that democracy is the best form of government, with support even lower among their Polish counterparts, a study has found.
A majority from Europe’s generation Z – 57% – prefer democracy to any other form of government. Rates of support varied significantly, however, reaching just 48% in Poland and only about 51-52% in Spain and France, with Germany highest at 71%.
More than one in five – 21% – would favour authoritarian rule under certain, unspecified circumstances. This was highest in Italy at 24% and lowest in Germany with 15%. In France, Spain and Poland the figure was 23%.
Nearly one in 10 across the nations said they did not care whether their government was democratic or not, while another 14% did not know or did not answer.
Thorsten Faas, a political scientist at Berlin’s Free University, who worked on the study, said: “Among people who see themselves as politically to the right of centre and feel economically disadvantaged, their support of democracy sinks to just one in three.
“Democracy is under pressure, from within and without.”
The study was carried out in April and May. More than 6,700 people between the ages of 16 and 26 in Britain, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Greece and Poland responded to the ninth annual survey by the YouGov institute for the Tui Foundation, which funds projects dedicated to youth in Europe.
Forty-eight per cent worry that the democratic system in their own country is endangered, including 61% in Germany, where the economy – Europe’s biggest – is ailing and the far right has made significant inroads, fuelled in part by increased backing from young voters.
The return of Donald Trump to the White House, the rise of China, and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine have shifted power away from Europe in the respondents’ perception, with just 42% counting the EU among the top three global players.
Despite – or perhaps because of – Brexit, the figure was highest among Britons at 50%. Of those surveyed in the UK, 73% wanted a return to the EU, while nearly half of young Europeans (47%) sought stronger ties between the EU and Britain.
The US was seen by 83% as part of the power trio, followed by China with 75% and Russia on 57%.
Rising polarisation is also driving young Europeans to the ideological fringes along with their elders, but a notable gender divide has emerged in the process.
Nearly one in five – 19% – described themselves as politically right of centre, up from 14% in 2021, while 33% called themselves centrists, 32% as leftist and 16% without any designation.
Women in Germany, France and Italy identified as progressive in higher numbers than four years ago, while young men in Poland and Greece have grown more conservative in the same period.
Support for tougher restrictions on migration has grown across the board since 2021, to 38% from 26%.
Most young Europeans expressed hope in the EU’s potential, and two in three overwhelmingly supported their country remaining in the bloc if it still was. But 39% described the EU as not particularly democratic and just 6% said their own national governments worked well, with little need for significant changes.
More than half – 53% – felt the EU was too focused on details and trivial matters. They would like the bloc to tackle the high cost of living, bolster defence against external threats and create better conditions for companies to improve the economy.
Elke Hlawatschek, the head of the Tui Foundation, said: “The European project, which has brought us peace, freedom of movement and economic progress for decades, is seen as unwieldy.”
Greek people see the strongest need for fundamental overhaul of their political system and are most sceptical about the EU, which Faas described as rooted in enduring trauma of the eurozone debt crisis that drove their country’s economy to the brink.
Despite stronger support for climate protection among young Europeans, just one in three said it should take priority over economic growth. The figure has slipped from 44% in 2021.
BREXIT, EUROPE, EUROPEAN UNION, FRANCE, GERMANY, ITALY, NEWS, Young people
The French Development Agency (AFD) is allocating EUR 5 million to Lviv for the reconstruction of part of Mykolaychuk Street, near the UNBROKEN center, and the construction of the foundation for a future tram line, according to the press service of the Lviv City Council.
The grant agreement was signed in Lviv on June 18 by Mayor Andriy Sadovyi, Chief Executive Officer of the French Development Agency (AFD) Remi Riu, and French Ambassador to Ukraine Gael Vessier.
It is noted that the project to launch a tram to this part of Lviv will involve five stages.
“The grant we will receive under the signed agreement is intended for the implementation of the first stage of the project – the reconstruction of part of Mykolaychuk Street, including the intersection of Orlyka and Shchurata Streets,” Sadovyi said.
According to him, in particular, opposite the hospital, four lanes will be built instead of two – two for public transport, two for private transport, and one for a duplicate entrance to the hospital. A two-way bike path will also be built on the side of the medical facility, and barrier-free sidewalks will be built along the entire length of the street. The foundation for laying tram tracks will be laid.
The second stage involves the construction of a pedestrian bridge in this area, which will connect the residential quarter with the hospital; the third and fourth stages involve the laying and connection of tram infrastructure from Horodnytska Street to the hospital area, and the fifth stage involves the laying of tram tracks from the hospital to social housing on Mykolaychuk Street.
To launch the tram and ensure inclusivity for pedestrians, the terrain will be leveled: in some locations, the street will be lowered by 1.5 to 4 meters.
The street reconstruction project will soon undergo expert review, and then, tentatively in October-November of this year, the first phase of work can begin. It will last about eight months.
Riu expressed hope that the organization will become a partner of Lviv in the implementation of the next phases of this large-scale project. “This project and our participation in it are a sign of solidarity and support for the entire Ukrainian people. We are participating in the first stage, but I hope we will be partners in the further phases of this project,” he said.
The total length of the new tram line will be 2.6 km (one way).
