- Journalists found that presidential candidate Volodymyr Zelenskiy, a comedy actor who gained television fame for his scathing political satire of the ruling elites, and his business partners still own three filmmaking companies in Russia, one of which produces movies and television series for the Russian market and appeared to even receive funds from the Russian government.
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russian President Vladimir Putin will agree to allow German and French specialists to monitor the Kerch Strait between the Black and Azov seas, following an official, written request from German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
- The state Asset Recovery and Management Agency, or ARMA, has come under fire for leasing some of the assets it has recovered to companies belonging to Ukrainian oligarchs.
Russia’s war on Ukraine
- Russian-led forces attacked Ukrainian positions in the Donbas 13 times over the past 24 hours, the Ukrainian military said.. One Ukrainian serviceman was wounded in combat.
- Lieutenant General Serhiy Nayev, commander of Ukraine’s joint forces combating Russian aggression in the country’s east, is convinced Moscow is readying fresh attacks against Ukraine.
- The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said it has already terminated 49 agreements with Russia and is currently considering terminating a second package of 50 agreements.
- Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said that negotiations on the supply of weapons are ongoing with the United States.
From this week’s Kyiv Post
- One heavyweight and several lightweight candidates for Ukrainian president registered this week, and several more announced their plans to run — including a couple of surprising ones. Read the latest campaign news in our weekly Election Watch.
- Gone, but not forgetting Russia: Read about10 of the most prominent opponents of the regime of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin who have fled their country to oppose him from abroad.
- Iryna Friz, the head of the new Ministry for Veteran Affairs, says she will ensure there is decent health and social support of Ukrainian veterans, issue cheap loans for their businesses, and promote veterans’ education at the country’s best universities.
- Ukraine’s free trade deal with Israelis expected to yield major benefits for both countries, according to Joel Lion, Israel’s ambassador to Ukraine. And beyond increasing trade, the agreement also demonstrates growing ties between two countries with a complicated historical legacy.
- “Women of the Gulag,” a 2018 documentary film directed by Russian-American Marianna Yarovskaya, which is in the running for an Oscar this year in the Best Documentary Short category, documents the grim reality of the totalitarian Soviet system as memories of its horrors fade in the former Soviet republics.
Business news
- Naftogaz of Ukraine, the state oil and gas company, revealed on Jan. 18 through its CEO, Andriy Kobolyev, that it lost a total of $32 billion from 2009 to 2017.
- Good news! The Kyiv Post is offering a 24 percent discount on a one-year online subscription in celebration of the newspaper’s 24th year. The discount brings the price down to $45 from the regular $60.
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