The value of Ukraine’s exports of insulated wires and cables, including fiber-optic cables, increased by 6% in January–April 2026 compared to the same period in 2025, reaching $488.8 million.
According to statistics from the State Customs Service, Germany remained the largest importer of Ukrainian products, just as it was last year, with shipments to that country rising by 5% to $168.4 million. Its share of total exports of these products decreased slightly to 34.5%.
As in January–April 2025, the top three importers also included Hungary—$80.4 million, or 16.5%—and Poland—$80 million, or 16.4%.
In April, exports of these products rose by 3.6% compared to April 2025, reaching $125.6 million.
As reported, according to the State Customs Service, in 2025 Ukraine increased exports of insulated wires and cables by 10.6% compared to 2024—to $1.41 billion.
Poland is preparing a reform of its citizenship procedure that is expected to make it more difficult for foreigners to obtain a Polish passport, according to a proposal from the Polish Ministry of the Interior and Administration.
According to the Ministry’s plan, the minimum period of legal residence in Poland for citizenship applicants is to be increased to 8 years. This model involves 3 years of temporary residence followed by 5 years of permanent residence. Currently, the path to citizenship is shorter for certain categories of foreigners.
The reform also provides for stricter integration requirements. Foreigners will be required to demonstrate proficiency in the Polish language at a level no lower than B2, pass a state exam on the history, constitutional values, and principles of the Polish state, and sign a declaration of loyalty to the Republic of Poland. According to Polish media reports, the exam may include approximately 40 questions.
The Polish Ministry of the Interior explains the reform as a necessity to enhance the prestige of Polish citizenship and introduce clear criteria to confirm applicants’ integration into Polish society.
The tightening of rules comes amid a record increase in the number of naturalizations. In 2025, more than 19,000 foreigners received Polish citizenship. The largest group was Ukrainian citizens—more than 10,000 people—followed by citizens of Belarus—6,500—and Russia—759 people, Polish media reported, citing data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration (MSWiA).
In 2024, 16,300 foreigners received Polish citizenship, about half of whom were Ukrainians. By comparison, in 2023, approximately 10,000 people received Polish citizenship, and in 2019, 6,600.
A significant portion of Ukrainians obtain Polish citizenship through mechanisms related to the Polish Card and subsequent permanent residence. This distinguishes them from some other migrant groups, for whom the path to citizenship is more often based on employment, long-term residence, or family ties.
Poland remains one of the main destinations for Ukrainians since the start of the full-scale war, as well as one of the largest labor markets for Ukrainian citizens. The tightening of citizenship rules means that the transition from temporary or permanent residency to a Polish passport may become a longer and more formalized process.
By 2100, the population will decline in 18 European Union countries, with the sharpest declines expected in Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, according to Eurostat data.
Under Eurostat’s baseline scenario, Latvia’s population will decrease by 33.9%, Lithuania’s by 33.4%, and Poland’s by 31.6% by the end of the century compared to 2025. A significant decline is also expected in Germany, Slovenia, Finland, and the Czech Republic, where the decline will be around 10%.
At the same time, population growth is projected only in nine EU countries by 2100. The population will increase by more than 25% only in Luxembourg and Malta—by 36.4% and 26%, respectively. Growth of 10–20% is expected in Sweden and Ireland.
Despite the overall population decline, Germany, according to Eurostat estimates, will remain the most populous EU country in 2100 with 74.7 million inhabitants. It will be followed by France with 67.2 million and Spain with 49.8 million people.
The statistical office notes that differences between countries will be significant both in terms of when peak population is reached and the scale of subsequent decline or growth.
The results of a public opinion poll conducted in March 2026 by the research company Active Group in collaboration with the Experts Club information and analysis centre show that Ukrainians’ attitude towards Poland remains consistently positive, yet is becoming more nuanced. Overall, 56.4% of respondents view Poland positively, whilst 14.7% view it negatively. Compared to August 2025, the proportion of positive views has remained almost unchanged (56.7%), whilst negative views have risen from 12.7% to 14.7%.
The breakdown of responses indicates a predominance of moderate views. The proportion of ‘entirely positive’ attitudes stands at 19.3%, whilst ‘mostly positive’ attitudes account for 37.1%. At the same time, the proportion of neutral views remains significant at 27.5%. This means that for a significant proportion of respondents, Poland does not evoke clearly defined emotional reactions, but is perceived rather through a pragmatic lens.
Negative attitudes are also predominantly moderate in nature: 12.4% of respondents chose the ‘mostly negative’ option, and only 2.3% chose ‘completely negative’. The proportion of those who were undecided is minimal (1.4%), indicating that Ukrainians’ perceptions of the country are sufficiently well-formed.
The dynamics of change between 2025 and 2026 indicate a certain increase in criticality in the perception of Poland. Whilst the overall positive balance is maintained, the proportion of unequivocally positive assessments is gradually decreasing, whilst the proportion of negative ones is increasing. This trend may indicate a shift from an emotionally positive to a more measured and rational perception.
It is important to note that, at the same time, Poland remains a country with a predominantly positive image in Ukrainian society. The ratio of positive to negative assessments, which is more than three times in favour of the positive, indicates that a high level of trust and a generally favourable attitude are maintained. At the same time, the growth in the negative component signals the emergence of new factors influencing public opinion.
The high proportion of neutral responses deserves special attention. This may indicate that, for some respondents, Poland is not an emotionally polarising factor, but is perceived as an important, though not unquestionable, partner. In such a situation, even minor changes in the information landscape or practical interactions could influence the balance of assessments in the future.
“Ukrainians do not view the world in black and white and assess other countries quite objectively. Where there is more information and experience of interaction, a more balanced attitude is formed. At the same time, even minor changes in the political or information environment can influence the dynamics of assessments,” noted Oleksandr Pozniy, director of the research company Active Group.
Overall, the survey results indicate that attitudes towards Poland in Ukraine remain consistently positive, but are gradually becoming more complex and multi-dimensional. This reflects a general trend towards the rationalisation of public opinion, where countries are assessed not only on the basis of emotions, but also taking into account specific experiences of interaction and the current context.
According to a study conducted by the Experts Club information and analytical centre based on data from the State Customs Service, Poland ranks second in terms of total trade in goods with Ukraine, with a figure of over $13 billion, second only to China. At the same time, Poland remains one of Ukraine’s key trading partners within the EU, although the trade balance is also negative for Ukraine.
The study was presented at the Interfax-Ukraine press centre; the video can be viewed on the agency’s YouTube channel. The full version of the study can be found via this link on the Experts Club analytical centre’s website.
ACTIVE GROUP, EXPERTS CLUB, POLAND, Pozniy, SOCIOLOGY, SURVEYS, UKRAINE, URAKIN
As part of Rinat Akhmetov’s Steel Front military initiative, Metinvest is working on exporting bunkers for the border between Poland and Russia, the company’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Alexander Mironenko said in an interview with Pryamyy TV channel.
“We are mainly working with our Western partners on shelters. This is very relevant right now: we are showing them our solutions for the construction of various structures. For example, a hospital that fully complies with NATO Role2 standards. It has been inspected by numerous delegations: military medics, engineers, and foreign specialists, and everyone agreed that the solutions are quite effective,” said Myronenko.
According to him, the company has presented its engineering solutions based on “hideouts” at many military-themed exhibitions and meetings, and they are very popular.
“We are currently working on entering the international market with these solutions, for example, for the construction of the border between Poland and Russia, using our experience and proposals for underground structures. The NATO army does not have such experience, so they are very interested in this. And we exchange information and experience with them,” said the COO.
He added that the shelters have undergone a major transformation. Initially, they were simply “barrels” buried in the ground. “Now we provide a full service — it is essentially an underground house with its own lighting, generator, stove, and all amenities: just plug the generator into the outlet, and the room is ready for use,” the COO clarified.
“The unique product we are proud of is, of course, the protective structures for the Patriot and SAMP/T air defense systems. And now we are developing protection for the Hawk air defense system control module, which operates in Ukraine. In my opinion, this is a unique experience, because we are talking about state-of-the-art technology designed to protect the sky from the enemy, but certain shortcomings have been revealed in real combat conditions. Together with the military, we corrected them – we made the control modules, radar installations, and other systems safer so that personnel could feel confident even in dangerous situations and conduct air defense of our cities and towns,” explained the top manager.
He added that the company plans to continue supporting the military in all areas, both through the purchase of equipment and through the provision of its own products.
“In production, we will focus on protecting equipment: we will improve existing solutions and develop new ones for different types of equipment. The second area is the development of ”shelters” and solutions based on them. An underground training center has already been built on the basis of such shelters, and we are now completing the construction of another large underground center for pilot training. This is a large niche in which we plan to continue working and developing,” Myronenko concluded.
A joint Polish-Ukrainian enterprise, PK MIL SA, has been established to manufacture, among other things, Ukrainian self-propelled howitzers “Bogdan” and towed howitzers “Bogdan-BG,” according to the press service of the Polish company PONAR Wadowice, on whose premises the production facility is being set up.
“PONAR Wadowice SA and Kramatorskie Zakłady Budowy Ciężkich Obrabiarek (KZVV) have established a joint Polish-Ukrainian enterprise, PK MIL SA, which will work to strengthen the European defense industry and implement the priorities of the ReArm Europe initiative,” the company said in a statement on its website.
It is reported that the company’s goal is to produce 155-mm NATO-standard artillery systems, in particular the Bogdan self-propelled howitzer and the Bogdan-BG towed howitzer. The project will be implemented on the basis of European production capacities and close industrial cooperation between Poland and Ukraine.
PK MIL SA is part of the PONAR Wadowice group, and PONAR Wadowice SA owns a controlling stake of 51% in PK MIL SA. This provides the company with stable capital, a technological and organizational base, and allows it to effectively use the experience of the PONAR Wadowice group in implementing projects for the defense sector.
It is emphasized that the creation of PK MIL SA is a response to “the growing demand for proven, reliable, and scalable artillery systems. The new company will make it possible to increase production capacity, shorten supply chains, and more effectively coordinate activities in the defense sector.”
Bogdan is the first Ukrainian 155 mm (NATO standard) wheeled self-propelled artillery system (SAU) adopted by the Armed Forces of Ukraine in 2023. It has high accuracy, rate of fire (up to 5-6 rounds/min), and a range of up to 40-60 km. Its production is constantly being scaled up.
