Latest news with #Poltava
Daily Mail
07-07-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Miner Ferrexpo sees iron ore output plummet after Ukraine suspends VAT refunds
Ferrexpo has reported a massive slump in iron ore production following the Ukrainian Government's decision to suspend tax refunds for the firm. The mining company delivered 1.3 million tonnes of iron ore during the quarter ending March, compared to 2.1 million in the previous quarter, which was the highest amount since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Meanwhile, the Swiss-headquartered group's pellet output plunged by 39 per cent from more than 1.3 million tonnes to 821,882 tonnes. Ferrexpo has been forced to downsize its operations to one pelletising line and to reduce the production of high-grade concentrate due to the halting of VAT refunds and their negative impact on liquidity levels. The suspension follows sanctions imposed by President Volodomyr Zelensky on the oligarch Kostiantyn Zhevago, who controls a 49.5 per cent stake in Ferrexpo and was once dubbed 'Europe's youngest self-made billionaire'. Zhevago has been accused of embezzling funds from Finance & Credit Bank, which collapsed in 2015. He has denied all allegations. Ukraine's government attempted, but failed, to seize his stake in Ferrexpo's Poltava mine through the courts in 2023. In March, the Daily Mail reported that Ferrexpo would initiate international arbitration proceedings if Ukraine part-nationalised the site, which is Ferrexpo's largest iron ore mine. 'All efforts and representations are underway with the respective authorities and government bodies in Ukraine and internationally to try to resolve the VAT refund suspension,' said Lucio Genovese, interim executive chair of Ferrexpo. Ferrexpo noted on Monday that demand for its high-grade low-alumina concentrate from customers in China continued to be strong. The group's annual production volumes remain far below pre-2022 volumes due to the conflict in Ukraine disrupting export operations and many employees serving in the country's armed forces. Mark Crouch, market analyst for eToro, said: 'Ferrexpo has long been navigating treacherous terrain, but the war in Ukraine has brought unprecedented disruption.' However, he added: 'It's worth remembering that Ferrexpo has weathered severe downturns before. 'The company's shares have traded at significantly lower levels during prior crises, such as the 2008 financial meltdown and the 2015 commodities rout. 'For long-term investors with a high-risk appetite, this may be seen not as a crisis, but as yet another turbulent chapter in Ferrexpo's volatile history.' Ferrexpo shares were 0.7 per cent higher at 49.1p on late Monday afternoon, taking their losses to around 55 per cent since the year began.
Asharq Al-Awsat
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Russia Focusing Airstrikes on Ukraine Draft Offices to Derail Recruitment, Kyiv Says
Russia killed two people in an airstrike on the central Ukrainian city of Poltava on Thursday and damaged a military draft office there in what Kyiv said was a concerted campaign to disrupt recruitment for its war effort. The strike on Poltava, which also injured 47 people and caused a fire at the city's main draft office, followed a drone attack on Monday near a recruitment center in Kryvyi Rih. Both cities are regional capitals. "We understand that their (Russian) goal is to disrupt the mobilisation process," Vitaliy Sarantsev, a spokesperson for Ukraine's ground forces, told Ukraine's public broadcaster, Reuters reported. "But I want to say is too early (for Russia) to uncork the champagne because the process is impossible to stop." Ukraine has struggled to fend off a bigger and better-equipped Russian army, and its call-up process has been marred by reports of draft-office corruption, poor training and weak battlefield command. Well into the fourth year of its full-scale invasion, Russia has gained ground in eastern Ukraine and repeatedly hit cities far behind the front lines with drones and missiles, while also waging a sabotage campaign there, Kyiv's domestic security agency says. In a statement to Reuters last month, the Security Service of Ukraine said it had arrested more than 700 people since 2024 for alleged crimes that included arson attacks on troop vehicles and bombings at draft offices. A Ukrainian security official, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said Russia was aiming to derail Kyiv's military call-up effort also by spreading disinformation and hacking recruitment office computers. "The disruption of mobilisation is closely linked to the spread of panic and intimidation of the population," the source said, adding that bombings were part of the general strategy. INTENSIFYING STRIKES Russian forces have also stepped up strikes on military training grounds in recent weeks, prompting Kyiv's top general to order a strengthening of security measures at bases. A missile attack on southeastern Ukraine this week killed a brigade commander. Ukrainian forces have also staged longer-range attacks on Russian bases in occupied territory as well as deep inside Russia. Thursday's strike on Poltava came after the US said it had paused some weapons shipments to Ukraine, which drew warnings in Kyiv that the move would harm Ukraine's defence against intensifying Russian air strikes and battlefield gains. Separately on Thursday, two people were killed in a ballistic missile strike on port infrastructure in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa, said regional governor Oleh Kiper. Dozens of people have been killed in recent drone and missile salvoes at Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kyiv.
Reuters
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Russia focusing airstrikes on Ukraine draft offices to derail recruitment, Kyiv says
KYIV, July 3 (Reuters) - Russia killed two people in an airstrike on the central Ukrainian city of Poltava on Thursday and damaged a military draft office there in what Kyiv said was a concerted campaign to disrupt recruitment for its war effort. The strike on Poltava, which also injured 47 people and caused a fire at the city's main draft office, followed a drone attack on Monday near a recruitment centre in Kryvyi Rih. Both cities are regional capitals. "We understand that their (Russian) goal is to disrupt the mobilisation process," Vitaliy Sarantsev, a spokesperson for Ukraine's ground forces, told Ukraine's public broadcaster. "But I want to say is too early (for Russia) to uncork the champagne because the process is impossible to stop." Ukraine has struggled to fend off a bigger and better-equipped Russian army, and its call-up process has been marred by reports of draft-office corruption, poor training and weak battlefield command. Well into the fourth year of its full-scale invasion, Russia has gained ground in eastern Ukraine and repeatedly hit cities far behind the front lines with drones and missiles, while also waging a sabotage campaign there, Kyiv's domestic security agency says. In a statement to Reuters last month, the Security Service of Ukraine said it had arrested more than 700 people since 2024 for alleged crimes that included arson attacks on troop vehicles and bombings at draft offices. A Ukrainian security official, who requested anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said Russia was aiming to derail Kyiv's military call-up effort also by spreading disinformation and hacking recruitment office computers. "The disruption of mobilisation is closely linked to the spread of panic and intimidation of the population," the source said, adding that bombings were part of the general strategy. Russian forces have also stepped up strikes on military training grounds in recent weeks, prompting Kyiv's top general to order a strengthening of security measures at bases. A missile attack on southeastern Ukraine this week killed a brigade commander. Ukrainian forces have also staged longer-range attacks on Russian bases in occupied territory as well as deep inside Russia. Thursday's strike on Poltava came after the U.S. said it had paused some weapons shipments to Ukraine, which drew warnings in Kyiv that the move would harm Ukraine's defence against intensifying Russian air strikes and battlefield gains. Separately on Thursday, two people were killed in a ballistic missile strike on port infrastructure in the southern Ukrainian city of Odesa, said regional governor Oleh Kiper. Dozens of people have been killed in recent drone and missile salvoes at Ukrainian cities, including the capital Kyiv.
Arab News
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Russian strikes kill eight in Ukraine
KYIV: Russia launched a wave of attacks on Ukraine on Thursday, killing at least eight people and wounding dozens of others, Ukrainian officials said. Among the sites hit were a military enlistment office in the eastern city of Poltava and port infrastructure in the southern city of Odesa. Moscow has stepped up its drone and missile bombardment of Ukraine in recent weeks, with peace talks stalling and Kyiv's key ally Washington signalling it could cut military support. The warring sides last met for direct talks more than a month ago and no further meeting has been organized. The Ukrainian army reported there were 'dead and wounded' at a recruitment office in Poltava. Emergency services posted images of buildings on fire and rescue workers at the scene of the strike. 'Two people were killed,' the emergency services said. The region's police added 47 people were wounded. In Odesa, two people were killed when 'an Iskander missile' struck the seaport, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba said on Telegram. He added that six people had been wounded in the strike. In Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region, strikes killed four people, the regional prosecutor's office said. 'At least nine apartment buildings, three garages, a shop facade and a power line were damaged in the settlements,' it added. In Russia's Lipetsk region, debris from a Ukrainian drone killed a woman and wounded two other people, its governor said Thursday. The debris fell on a building in Lipetsk, which lies about 400 kilometers (250 miles) southeast of Moscow, killing a woman in her seventies, Igor Artamonov wrote on Telegram.
Asharq Al-Awsat
03-07-2025
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Russian Attack Kills Two in City of Poltava, Ukrainian Officials Say
A Russian attack on the city of Poltava in central Ukraine killed two people and damaged a military recruitment center, the Ukrainian military and regional officials said on Thursday. Regional governor Volodymyr Kohut said 11 people were also wounded, while the military reported fires in the military recruitment building and in a nearby residential building, reported Reuters. Photos from the scene posted by emergency services showed firefighters battling blazes as well as damaged buildings and cars. Russia has stepped up drone and missile attacks on Ukraine in the last month, and has launched some of the biggest attacks since its full-scale invasion that began in February 2022. The aerial assault followed a drone attack on Monday near a military recruitment center in the central city of Kryvyi Rih. Civilians were wounded in Kryvyi Rih, the military said, adding that military personnel and civilian employees of the recruitment center had sheltered during the air alert. Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, have underlined the urgency of assistance on air defense from allies to defend against such assaults.
