On Wednesday, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law on taxation of remuneration for gig contracts of Diia.City residents (draft law No. 9319) with an amendment to bring new tax rules (draft law No. 11416d) into force for individual entrepreneurs and legal entities on a single tax from January 1, 2025, said Danylo Hetmantsev, chairman of the parliamentary committee on taxation and customs policy.
“Draft Law 9319 has been signed. The increase for individual entrepreneurs comes into force on January 1. Everything is as promised,” he wrote in his telegram channel.
His deputy Yaroslav Zheleznyak noted that the law had been awaiting the president’s signature for 17 days.
As reported, on November 28, the President of Ukraine signed Law 4015-IX (Bill No. 11416-d) on amendments to the Tax Code regarding the peculiarities of taxation during martial law. The document envisages an increase in the military tax from 1.5% to 5% starting from October 1 this year, a 50% increase in the bank profit tax in 2024, and an increase in a number of other taxes and fees.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed decrees appointing Yuliya Fediv as Ukraine’s ambassador to the Republic of Filipina, Vyacheslav Yatsyuk as Ukraine’s ambassador to the Republic of Rwanda, and Vasyl Gamyanin as Ukraine’s ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The corresponding decrees No. 874/2024, 873/2024 and 878/2024 of December 21 were published on the website of the head of the Ukrainian state on Saturday.
Before that, Zelensky dismissed Gamyanin from the post of Ukraine’s ambassador to Indonesia and from the post of Ukraine’s representative to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which he held part-time. The head of state also dismissed Ukraine’s ambassador to Rwanda Andriy Pravednik from his post.
Yatsyuk was Ukraine’s ambassador to Norway in 2016-22, was previously director of the Foreign Ministry’s political department, and headed a working group in the OSCE. Fediv was previously head of the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation (UCF), and her candidacy for Ukraine’s minister of culture was under consideration.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine will not continue to transit Russian gas.
“We will not continue the transit of Russian gas, we will not allow them to earn additional billions on our blood. Any country in the world that can get something cheap from Russia will eventually become dependent on the Russian Federation, whether tomorrow or in a month or a year. This is their policy. Therefore, we will not transit Russian gas,” Zelenskyy said at a press conference in Brussels on Thursday.
Zelenskyy noted that in a conversation with the Prime Minister of Slovakia, he said that if there is not Russian gas, but gas from another country, and there is no payment to Russia until the end of the war, Ukraine is ready to consider this option.
At the same time, Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine would not allow additional earnings for Russia.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has received credentials from the newly appointed ambassadors of four countries in Ukraine: Greece – Panteles Alexandros Dimitrakopoulos, Albania – Ernal Filo, Japan – Masashi Nakagome and Egypt – Barakat Ali Elleiti.
According to the website of the Ukrainian head of state on Tuesday, during a meeting with the Greek ambassador Volodymyr Zelensky noted the high level of bilateral relations and thanked for defense support. The President spoke about the main needs in military assistance, primarily in air defense, artillery and armored vehicles.
In his conversation with the Ambassador of Albania, the President of Ukraine thanked the government and people of Albania for their constant support since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation
Separately, he noted that it is important to sign a bilateral security agreement as soon as possible. “We had consultations on the bilateral security agreement. We hope that with your help we will prepare the document for signing as soon as possible,” Zelensky said.
During the meeting with the Japanese ambassador, the President noted his country’s support for Ukraine and the development of the current bilateral cooperation, expressed readiness for further intensification of dialog at all levels, and discussed current challenges for Ukraine.
The head of state emphasized that it is important to strengthen cooperation with Japan in the security sphere on information exchange and ways of joint response to the participation of North Korean military in the war against Ukraine. “Today the situation with North Korea, its troops on the Russian side requires a response – we need Japan’s support,” Zelensky said.
In a conversation with the Egyptian ambassador, the President noted that Ukraine is interested in the activation of bilateral dialog, the early resumption of trade and economic cooperation, as well as the implementation of specific projects in the field of food security. The head of state also emphasized that it is important to involve Egypt in the promotion of the Formula World, in particular, joining the General Communiqué.
“Now we have defensive developments and are ready to develop in this direction. We have an initiative on food security “Grain from Ukraine” and we hope that Egypt will join this mission,” – said Zelensky.
During his visit to the United States, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with President of Vietnam To Lam to discuss the development of bilateral relations, the increase in trade, and Vietnam’s participation in the post-war recovery of Ukraine.
“We talked about the development of bilateral relations and the increase in trade between our countries, particularly in the agricultural industry. Thank you for your humanitarian support and willingness to join Ukraine’s recovery after the war,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram on Wednesday.
During his working visit to New York, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Finnish President Alexander Stubb to discuss the situation on the battlefield, Ukraine’s defense needs, and international cooperation.
According to the press service of the Ukrainian president, “the meeting discussed Ukrainian-Finnish defense cooperation, specifically the joint production of drones and the exchange of experience in this area.”
Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine needs air defense systems, including man-portable air defense systems. He also briefed his interlocutor on the current stage of implementation of the agreements reached during the NATO summit in Washington.
“Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that it is important for Ukraine to obtain permission from its partners and the means to strike deep into Russian territory,” the press service reports.
The parties also discussed what international efforts are needed to achieve a lasting and just peace for Ukraine, as well as the role of the Global South in this process.
