The volume of tractor imports to Ukraine in January 2026 amounted to $33.3 million, which is 24.2% less than in the same month of 2025 ($43.9 million), according to statistics from the State Customs Service.
According to the published statistics, tractor imports decreased by 2.5 times compared to December last year.
Last month, tractors were imported mainly from China (31.2% of total imports of this equipment, or $10.4 million), the United States (13.3%, or $4.4 million), and Germany (11.8%, or $3.9 million), while last year China was also the leader ($9.34 million), Germany was second ($5.5 million), and the United States was third ($3.7 million).
According to statistics from the State Customs Service, last month $0.4 million worth of tractors were exported, mainly to Belgium (31.8%), while last year exports amounted to $0.56 million, with most supplies going to Zambia (41.4%).
As reported, the volume of tractor imports to Ukraine in 2025 reached $845.7 million, exceeding the 2024 figure by 7.9%. The main suppliers were the United States ($179.7 million), Germany ($145 million), and China ($142.8 million). Exports amounted to $6.6 million, compared to $5.4 million in 2024, and were mainly to Romania, Belgium, and Germany.
The United States and Ukraine discussed during talks an “ambitious goal” of agreeing on a draft peace agreement with Russia by March 2026, although the timeline could shift due to the lack of agreements on key issues, Reuters reported, citing sources familiar with the course of the consultations.
According to the agency, the framework under discussion envisages putting a possible agreement to a nationwide referendum in Ukraine and holding nationwide elections on the same day. Two Reuters sources said May was discussed as a benchmark, however several interlocutors called such a schedule “fantastic.”
Reuters separately points to practical and legal constraints: holding nationwide elections in Ukraine is prohibited during martial law, and election organizers previously assessed that preparing a vote under current conditions would require about six months and legislative changes. In addition, Kyiv, according to the agency’s sources, insists that a ceasefire regime is needed for the campaign in order to ensure the integrity of the vote.
In parallel, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the United States would like to find a solution to end the war “by summer,” and Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha told Reuters that Kyiv seeks to speed up the negotiation process, calling the U.S. role key to reaching a final agreement.
A new project has been launched in Ukraine with the support of the US government-funded AGRO Agricultural and Rural Development Program. The project will strengthen the institutional and technical capacity of water user organizations and promote the implementation of modern approaches to land reclamation infrastructure management, according to the press service of the Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture.
The Ministry of Economy noted that the project is being implemented by the Association of Water User Organizations (AWUO) and is designed to form a long-term partnership between Ukraine and the US in the field of hydraulic reclamation.
“The launch of this project makes it possible to combine state policy, the expertise of the professional community, and the support of international partners to form a sustainable model for managing irrigation infrastructure and expanding farmers’ access to modern technologies,” explained Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture Iryna Ovcharenko, whose words are quoted in the report.
It is noted that within the framework of the project, agricultural producers will receive comprehensive consulting support on the creation and operation of water user organizations, management of engineering infrastructure, and ensuring their financial sustainability. A separate area of focus is a professional training program for irrigation managers, aimed at improving the efficiency of land reclamation systems and long-term planning for their development.
In addition, AOWC experts will conduct technical audits of the irrigation networks of 25 agricultural producers and five water user organizations, based on the results of which individual solutions for infrastructure modernization will be developed. It is expected that within the framework of the project, Ukrainian farmers will establish cooperation with American manufacturers of irrigation equipment and suppliers of management and service solutions.
“The development of water user organizations is a key element in the restoration and modernization of irrigation in Ukraine (…) It will also accelerate the restoration of Ukraine’s irrigation infrastructure, as experts estimate that the level of wear and tear reaches about 80%,” Ovcharenko emphasized.
The Ministry of Economy reminded that the development of hydraulic reclamation is of strategic importance for Ukraine’s agro-industrial complex. Since the start of the full-scale war, irrigated areas have decreased from 525,000 hectares in 2021 to 137,000 hectares in 2024. At the same time, the potential for restoring irrigation in Ukraine is at least 1 million hectares.
As of early 2026, 73 water user organizations have been established in 14 regions of Ukraine, including 19 in 2025.
US President Donald Trump said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos that he expects to sign a law regulating the structure of the cryptocurrency market, which will cover Bitcoin in particular, in the near future. According to him, the administration is striving to ensure that the US remains the “crypto capital of the world.” Trump also recalled that he had previously signed the GENIUS Act and added that Congress is working “very diligently” on a new set of rules for crypto assets, which he “hopes to sign very soon.”
Trump’s statements were accompanied by increased volatility in the cryptocurrency market: according to industry publications, Bitcoin initially fell after the comments from Davos, but then partially recovered and returned to levels around $90,000 as investors assessed the signals regarding regulation and the overall news background.
CRYPTO MARKET, DAVOS, LAW, TRUMP, USA
Social influencers and content creators on subscription platforms, including OnlyFans, are increasingly applying for O-1B visas in the US for people with outstanding achievements in the arts, the Financial Times reported.
As noted in the publication, in such cases, lawyers use digital metrics — audience, reach, revenue, and commercial collaborations — as one way to confirm the applicant’s “notoriety” and professional success; a niche of lawyers specializing in such applications has also formed in the market.
This is not a “new visa for models,” but rather the existing O-1 (extraordinary ability/achievement) category, often referred to in the public sphere as the “talent visa.” The formal requirements for it are established by USCIS rules and federal regulations and do not include a separate criterion for the number of subscribers — the applicant must prove outstanding abilities or achievements through the prescribed sets of evidence.
According to US State Department statistics, in fiscal year 2024, consulates issued 19,457 O-1 visas, 13,922 O-2 visas (accompanying professionals), and 6,035 O-3 visas (family members).
In the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, perceptions of the EU and the US are formed not through their own experience, but through the prism of Russian propaganda and information isolation. This was stated by sociologist, director of the Active Group research company Oleksandr Poznyi during his speech at the Forum on Countering Russian Propaganda and Disinformation, held on December 17-18, 2025 in Brussels.
In his speech, the expert relied on the results of sociological studies conducted in 2023-2025 and emphasized that residents of the temporarily occupied territories are virtually deprived of direct communication with Europe and the United States. In such circumstances, the perception of the West is formed mainly through narratives imposed by the occupation authorities. “For many people in the TOT, Europe and the United States are not partners or allies of Ukraine, but abstract, distant actors whose image is almost entirely shaped by the Russian media,” said Poznyi.
According to the sociologist, Russian propaganda systematically forms two dominant images of the West. The first one is aggressive and hostile, which allegedly “controls Ukraine”, “provokes war” and “uses Ukrainians in its own interests”. The second is cynical and indifferent, “tired of Ukraine” and ready to sacrifice its territories for the sake of stability. “These narratives contradict each other but coexist perfectly. They are not about logic, they are about emotion and fear,” explained Poznyi.
As a result, a part of the population has a distorted view of the role of the EU and the US, which has nothing to do with the real policy of supporting Ukraine, but directly affects public sentiment and expectations for the future. One of the key reasons for this perception is complete information isolation. Ukrainian and Western sources of information are blocked or criminalized, and any alternative viewpoints are viewed as “extremism” or “espionage.”
“People cannot verify information. They are forced to live inside an information bubble where the West is an image, not a reality,” the sociologist emphasized. According to him, even those TOT residents who support Ukraine internally often avoid talking about Europe or the United States, as these topics are considered “dangerous” and may arouse suspicion on the part of the occupation structures.
During the forum in Brussels, these observations were presented as a serious challenge for European policy. According to Poznyi, the perception of the EU and the US in the occupied territories will directly affect the processes of de-occupation and reintegration in the future. “If people have been hearing for years that Europe is an enemy or a traitor, these perceptions do not automatically disappear after de-occupation,” he emphasized.
The Forum on Countering Russian Propaganda and Disinformation, held on December 17-18, 2025 in Brussels at the European Parliament and the European Economic and Social Committee, was dedicated to strengthening Europe’s cognitive and information resilience in the face of hybrid threats.
The event brought together representatives of European institutions, think tanks, media and civil society from Ukraine and the EU. The event was aimed at outlining the scope and mechanisms of Russian propaganda, showing its destructive impact on public consciousness, and discussing ways to counter it.
