DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Ukraine war live updates: Russia says it isn’t bluffing over threats to use nuclear weapons; ‘difficult night’ for Kharkiv
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The European Union's upcoming 14th sanctions package against Russia must do more to choke off energy exports and clamp down on circumvention by third parties, an advisor to the office of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told CNBC. Vladyslav Vlasiuk said it was also vital to tighten export controls on critical technologies used within Moscow's military equipment. However, he noted that EU states would need to work more cohesively for sanctions to stand a chance of crossing the line by the end of next month as planned. The EU's special envoy for the implementation of sanctions, David O'Sullivan, was in Kyiv Thursday to discuss the latest sanctions package amid ongoing pushback from member states such as Hungary. Shapoval noted, however, that gas supplies were much more difficult to direct without European infrastructure than, for example, oil.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Vladyslav Vlasiuk, Vlasiuk, David O'Sullivan, Nataliia, Shapoval, — Karen Gilchrist Organizations: CNBC, Kremlin, Russian Sanctions, EU Locations: Russia, Kyiv, Hungary, Belarus, China, India

☆ EU's 14th sanctions package must target circumvention, energy exports, Zelenskyy advisor says
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-31 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The European Union's upcoming 14th sanctions package against Russia must do more to choke off energy exports and clamp down on circumvention by third parties, an advisor to the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told CNBC. He noted that EU states would need to work more cohesively for sanctions to stand a chance of crossing the line by the end of next month as planned. "The most critical aspect of the 14th sanctions package is its adoption by the end of June, but some member states currently pose a challenge to this," Vlasiuk said via email Thursday. The EU's special envoy for the implementation of sanctions, David O'Sullivan, was in Kyiv on Thursday to discuss the latest sanctions package amid ongoing pushback from member states such as Hungary. Among the proposed measures is a ban on Russian liquified natural gas, or LNG, exports and a crackdown on sanctions circumvention via countries including Kremlin ally Belarus.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Vladyslav Vlasiuk, Vlasiuk, David O'Sullivan, Nataliia, Shapoval, Dmitry Birichevsky Organizations: CNBC, Kremlin, Russian Sanctions, EU, KSE Institute, Russian Foreign Ministry, Ria Locations: Wilhelmshaven, Germany, Russia, Kyiv, Hungary, Belarus, China, India, Ria Novosti, Ports, France, Belgium, Spain, Asia

As Ukraine struggles to hold back Russian advances, the country’s officials say they are once again facing the formidable challenge of keeping electricity flowing as Moscow’s forces increasingly strike power plants. To conserve energy, the government has ordered nationwide rolling blackouts for Monday night, broadening the smaller regional ones that have become the norm in recent weeks. “This is another frontline in the war,” said Maxim Timchenko, the head of DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private electricity company, on social media last week. He said the company’s workers were engaged in a “race against time” to restore power to consumers. The nationwide blackout, scheduled from 6 p.m. to midnight, will affect the entire country for the first time this year, but it is unclear if it will continue past Monday.

Persons: ”, Maxim Timchenko Locations: Ukraine

Many Ukrainians were up in the early hours of Sunday morning, for once not to seek shelter from incoming Russian missiles, but to celebrate the Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk becoming the world’s undisputed heavyweight champion. Mr. Usyk’s victory over the British boxer Tyson Fury was a rare piece of good news for an embattled nation that is struggling to contain Russian advances, particularly in the northeast, where Moscow has opened a new front. President Volodymyr Zelensky lauded the victory as a symbol of Ukraine’s resilience. “Ukrainians hit hard!” Mr. Zelensky wrote in a Telegram post around 3 a.m. that included a photograph of Mr. Usyk delivering a punch to Mr. Fury. Russian troops recently advanced farther into Robotyne, a village in the south that was one of the rare successes of Ukraine’s failed counteroffensive last summer.

Persons: Oleksandr Usyk, Tyson Fury, Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, Usyk, Fury, Ukraine’s Locations: British, Moscow, Robotyne

☆ 12 tricks to make your cheap furniture look more expensive, from interior designers
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Sophia Mitrokostas | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Business Insider spoke with interior designers about hacks for upgrading cheap furniture. AdvertisementBusiness Insider asked interior designers to share their favorite ways to make cheap pieces look more expensive. Reupholster your cheap furniture in a nicer fabricReupholstering is a fairly simply DIY project. "You can swap out those generic handles or pulls with more aspirational options that will cost less than an entirely new piece of furniture," Stransky told BI. AdvertisementPaint your old furniture for a fresh lookA fresh coat of paint can elevate a piece of furniture.

Persons: —, Alexandra, Kim Depole, Xi Bai, Depole, Kateryna, Shutterstock Anthony Stransky, Anthony Charles, Nataliia, Stransky, Andy Dean Organizations: Service, Harper, Anthony Charles Interiors

☆ How Ukraine, With No Warships, Is Thwarting Russia’s Navy
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Marc Santora | More About Marc Santora | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

About two dozen Russian ships and one submarine have been damaged or destroyed since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, Admiral Neizhpapa said. Oryx, a military analysis site that counts only losses that it has visually confirmed, has documented at least 16 damaged or destroyed ships. Standing in front of a classified chart that lists damage done to Russian vessels, Admiral Neizhpapa said he had no time for what he called “wishful sinking” — any exaggeration of what Ukraine has achieved. There are still scores of powerful Russian warships that Ukraine wants to take off the board. “The enemy also learns very quickly, and he also makes his own conclusions, counteracting our actions,” Admiral Neizhpapa said.

Persons: Admiral Neizhpapa, “, Anna Lukinova, Nataliia Novosolova, Anastasia Kuznietsova Locations: Marichka, Russia, Ukraine, Russia’s

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — For months after Ukraine's Western allies limited sales of Russian oil to $60 per barrel, the price cap was still largely symbolic. That time has now come, putting the price cap to its most serious test so far and underlining its weaknesses. But most of that, economists say, stems from Europe's ban on Russian oil, which cost Moscow its main customer. They're accused of carrying Russian oil priced at $75 and $80 per barrel while relying on U.S.-connected service providers. “The price cap is working,” says Nataliia Shapoval, vice president for policy research at the Kyiv school.

Persons: —, Benjamin Hilgenstock, Vladimir Putin, ” Hilgenstock, P Global Platts, It's, They're, “, ”, Viktor Katona, haven't, Alexander Novak, Putin, Novak, Europe —, Craig Kennedy, doesn't, Nataliia Shapoval, Shapoval, Josh Boak Organizations: Kyiv School of Economics, International Monetary Fund, U.S . Treasury Department, Stanford University, ”, Russia ”, Research, Energy, Clean, P Global, Russia, U.S . Treasury, United Arab Emirates, Treasury, Radio Business, Harvard’s Davis Center for Russian, Studies, Kyiv, Stanford, Tanker Locations: FRANKFURT, Germany, Ukraine, Israel, Russia, Ukrainian, U.S, Moscow, Helsinki, Saudi Arabia, Europe, Kozmino, Turkey, India, Russian, Asia, Washington, russia, ukraine

☆ A price cap on Russian oil aims to starve Putin of cash. But it’s largely been untested. Until now
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

For months after Ukraine's Western allies limited sales of Russian oil to $60 per barrel, the price cap was still largely symbolic. That time has now come, putting the price cap to its most serious test so far and underlining its weaknesses. But most of that, economists say, stems from Europe's ban on Russian oil, which cost Moscow its main customer. The U.K. Treasury says it is "actively undertaking a number of investigations into suspected breaches of the oil price cap." "And there's a reason why the shippers haven't really complained or haven't flagged any issues with the oil price cap — because it's very easily circumvented."

Persons: —, Hilgenstock, P Global Platts, It's, Benjamin Hilgenstock, Vladimir Putin, They're, Viktor Katona, haven't, Alexander Novak, Putin, Novak, Europe —, Craig Kennedy, doesn't, Nataliia Shapoval, Shapoval Organizations: Salym Petroleum, U.S . Treasury Department, Stanford University, Research, Energy, Clean, P Global, Kyiv School of Economics, International Monetary Fund, Russia, U.S . Treasury, United Arab Emirates, Treasury, Radio Business, Harvard's Davis Center for Russian, Studies, Kyiv, Stanford, Tanker Locations: Salym, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, U.S, Moscow, Helsinki, Saudi Arabia, Ukrainian, Europe, Kozmino, Turkey, India, Russian, Asia

☆ Russia's War in Ukraine: Live Updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Anushka Patil | Nataliia Novosolova | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Rafael Mariano Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, at the U.N. headquarters in New York on Tuesday. Frontline fighting has repeatedly damaged the facility, disrupted its power supply and contributed to a staffing crisis that is “not sustainable,” Mr. Grossi said on Tuesday. Even as Russia and Ukraine accused each other of causing damage and outages, Mr. Grossi largely avoided placing blame on either country while he sought to negotiate an agreement. Speaking after Mr. Grossi’s briefing, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., denounced Russia’s actions as a “clear escalation” of Moscow’s efforts to “undermine Ukrainian sovereignty and authority” over the plant. “And this undermines our ability to have confidence in the level of nuclear safety at the plant,” she said.

Persons: Rafael Mariano Grossi, Mr, Grossi, Grossi’s, Linda Thomas, Greenfield, ”, Sergiy Kyslytsya, Vassily Nebenzia, Julian Barnes Organizations: International Atomic Energy Agency, . Security Locations: New York, Russia, Ukraine, Kyiv, gunpoint, United States, U.S, Ukrainian, Russian

☆ Ukraine rebuilding would be small wager for Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Pierre Briancon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

The irony is that effort had started when Russian President Vladimir Putin annexed Crimea in 2014, thus ensuring that Ukraine would firmly aspire to belong to Europe. The war inflicted severe damage on Ukraine, with GDP down 30% last year according to the International Monetary Fund. Rebuilding Ukraine will require help, expertise and guidance – and a lot of time and money. And the United States, Japan and multilateral organisations such as the IMF will continue to flank Europe in its efforts to rebuild Ukraine. Nevertheless, it is in Europe’s interest to play a major part in Ukraine’s reconstruction before the country is accepted as a formal candidate member of the EU.

☆ Rebuilding Ukraine depends on luring private money
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Pierre Briancon | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

KYIV, May 10 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Oleksandr Gryban is already thinking of the moment when Ukraine can build again. But the real challenge is to convince sceptical private investors both at home and abroad that Ukraine is a good destination for their cash. Investors can take solace that the team tasked with rebuilding Ukraine has proven competent and resourceful. There is a bull case for private investment in Ukraine. The other factor that might lure private capital involves Ukraine helping itself, by completing reforms initiated in the last few years.

"Right now the war in Ukraine is at a critical point," U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters. Germany would provide Marder Infantry Fighting Vehicles, according to a joint statement on Thursday from Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz. TRUCE PROPOSALUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy rejected out of hand a Russian order for a truce over Orthodox Christmas starting at noon on Friday and ending at midnight on Saturday. The heaviest fighting of the war continues in eastern Ukraine, with the worst of it near the eastern city of Bakhmut. Ukraine says Russia has lost thousands of troops despite seizing scant ground in months of futile waves of assaults on Bakhmut.

☆ Kherson residents stock up as first Ukrainian supermarket opens
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] People shop at an ATB store which was the first reopened Ukrainian supermarket after Russia's military retreat from Kherson, Ukraine November 20, 2022. REUTERS/Murad SezerKHERSON, Ukraine, Nov 20 (Reuters) - Hundreds of Kherson residents flocked on Sunday to buy groceries at the first Ukrainian supermarket to open since the city was retaken by pro-Kyiv forces earlier this month. "Out of principle, I didn't carry any rubles and never bought Russian goods," 49-year-old Nataliia Tsvihun said while standing in line outside the ATB store. Kherson remains without electricity, running water or heating, but residents found some relief in being able to purchase Ukrainian pickled gherkins, dumplings, horseradish and other favourites. Reporting by Joseph Campbell and Felix Hoske; Editing by David Ljunggren and Daniel WallisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Two villages relish partial power as Ukraine faces blackouts
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-19 | by ( Jonathan Landay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterLymany and Lupareve have not been spared the fighting that has convulsed countless other Ukrainian villages, towns, and cities. But their power supply means that residents who had earlier fled the village are returning. 'WE HAVE ENOUGH'The earlier fighting left the villages without power and water, prompting the flight of all but 216 of Lymany’s 4,000 residents and 36 of Lupareve’s 1,200 residents, Panashiy said. But three weeks ago, Ukrainian troops restored power to the villages via a cable they laid to a distant factory, villagers said. But red aircraft warning lights blinked unceasingly on the towers, Panashiy said, providing Russian gunners with aiming points.

☆ Ukraine allies see risk in Russia's response to battlefield setbacks
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Ukrainian soldiers sit on infantry fighting vehicles as they drive near Izyum, eastern Ukraine on September 16, 2022, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Such repeated threats have raised concerns Putin could at some point turn to small nuclear weapons or chemical warfare. It would change the face of war unlike anything since World War Two." Some military analysts have said Russia might also stage a nuclear incident at Zaporizhzhia, Europe's largest nuclear power plant held by Russia but run by Ukrainian staff. His remarks were a reminder of the risks of escalation as the United States and its NATO allies aid Ukraine from a distance.

☆ Ukraine and Russia: What you need to know right now
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Damaged buildings are seen, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in the town of Izium, recently liberated by Ukrainian Armed Forces, in Kharkiv region, Ukraine September 17, 2022. * The Kremlin rejected allegations that Russian forces had committed war crimes in Ukraine's Kharkiv region as a "lie". DIPLOMACY/AID* U.S. President Biden urged Russian President Vladimir Putin not to use tactical nuclear or chemical weapons in the wake of Russian military setbacks in Ukraine. read more* Germany will supply Ukraine with four more Panzer howitzer 2000 tanks along with an additional ammunition package, the defence ministry said. Ukraine has urged the West to step up military aid to help it turn the tide of battle against Russia.

Search resuls for: "Nataliia"

16 mentions found