Kyivstar becomes 1st Ukrainian company to join US stock exchange
The Kyivstar signboard visible on the facade of the building on December 15, 2023 in Lviv, Ukraine. (Photo by Mykola Tys/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Kyivstar — Ukraine’s leading digital operator — will ring the Nasdaq opening bell Friday morning as the first Ukrainian company to be listed on a United States stock exchange to celebrate its historic listing and the launch of its Invest in Ukraine NOW! campaign.
The company officially began trading on the Nasdaq on Aug. 15 under the umbrella of its parent company, VEON. Together, the companies launched the campaign to draw in U.S. and global investors, showcasing Kyvistar as a unique investment opportunity not only as a successful company, but also as a symbol of Ukraine’s economic growth and potential post-war recovery.
Beyond its nearly 22.4 million mobile customers, Kyivstar has expanded into entertainment, digital healthcare and ride-hailing platforms that all rank among Ukrainian market leaders.
“Kyivstar’s listing on Nasdaq under the ticker KYIV gives American investors a window into the Ukrainian economy as a whole,” said Augie K Fabela II, chairman and founder of VEON, in a press release.
The Invest in Ukraine NOW! campaign was attended by Ukrainian government officials, VEON and Kyivstar executives, investors, and business leaders. VEON and Kyivstar framed the initiative as both an image of wartime resilience and a practical effort to spur foreign investment.
“We have transformed Kyivstar into a robust digital operator with a globally attractive business model and growth story, while being the backbone of Ukraine’s resilience and reconstruction,” said Kyivstar President Oleksandr Komarov in a press release.
“This week we mark the resilience and potential of Ukraine. Together with our team, partners, investors and governmental counterparts, we mark the beginning of Kyivstar’s new chapter. We are excited to help build bridges for other Ukrainian companies to deepen their global partnerships, especially with the American and global business community.”
(NEW YORK) — Tuesday, July 22 will be the second-shortest day of the year, as Earth completes a full rotation in less time than usual.
The planet on Tuesday will experience a shorter rotation than the typical 24 hours, though not by much: 1.34 milliseconds less than usual, according to Timeanddate.com.
Typically, we think of the shortest day in the Northern Hemisphere as Dec. 21 or 22, which coincides with the winter solstice – July 21 or 22 in the Southern Hemisphere – which is the point at which the hemisphere is tilted farthest away from the sun. In those instances, however, it’s only the number of hours of daylight that are affected, and not the length of time it takes for the Earth to make a full rotation on its axis.
The 1.34-millisecond discrepancy in Tuesday’s length is explained by differences in the gravitational pull between the Earth and the moon, which causes the Earth to spin more quickly, according to the Lunar and Planetary Institute.
In recent years, Earth has broken its own speed records several times, including on July 5, 2024 – the shortest day ever measured, when the planet’s full rotation was completed 1.66 milliseconds faster than usual, according to Timeanddate.com.
This year, July 10 was measured as the shortest day of the year, with a full rotation occurring 1.36 milliseconds faster than normal. Aug. 5 is expected to be the third-shortest day of the year, projected to be 1.25 milliseconds shorter than usual.
Earth completes one full rotation on its axis in 24 hours, or about 86,400 seconds, plus or minus a millisecond or so, according to Timeanddate.com. Before 2020, Earth’s shortest length of day was just 1.05 milliseconds shorter than usual.
If current trends continue, a full second may need to be subtracted from atomic clocks in the near future to accommodate for a “negative leap second,” according to Timeanddate.com.
The system of leap seconds was introduced in the 1970s, according to Time and Date. While there have been dozens of positive leap seconds, in which a second was added, there has never been a negative leap second. The International Earth Rotation and Reference Systems Service, which monitor’s the Earth’s rotation, also determines whether to add or subtract a second.
In its early days – about 4.5 billion years ago – Earth was spinning at a much faster rate, according to the Lunar and Planetary Institute. A full rotation only lasted between three and six hours.
During the mid-Proterozoic period – between 2.5 billion years ago and 543 million years ago – the Earth had slowed such that a day lasted about 19 hours, according to a 2023 study published in Nature Geoscience.
Since then, the length of an Earth day has slowed to its present 24 hours due to the fact that the moon’s gravitational pull “steals” some of energy Earth uses to spin, in addition to causing tidal friction, according to the Institute.
Additionally, climate change is causing days on Earth to become longer due to the melting of ice at the poles, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. As the poles melt, the redistribution of mass from the resulting sea-level rise also is increasing the length of a day, the researchers found.
Viacheslav Onyshchenko/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
(LONDON) — Russian and Ukrainian negotiating teams will again meet in Istanbul, Turkey, on Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed, for the first such meeting since President Donald Trump set a 50-day deadline for a ceasefire to be reached.
In his nightly video address on Monday, Zelenskyy said he spoke with Rustem Umerov — the former defense minister who is now heading Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council — on Monday, to discuss upcoming prisoner swaps and the next round of talks with Moscow.
“Umerov reported that the meeting is planned for Wednesday,” the president said. “More details will follow tomorrow.”
Russia’s state TASS news agency, meanwhile, quoted a source in Turkey who also said the talks would be held on Wednesday. The state-owned RIA news agency — also quoting a source — said the negotiations would stretch over Thursday and Friday.
This week’s meeting will be the third recent round of talks between the two combatants, previous meetings having been held in Istanbul on May 16 and June 2. Before that, the two sides had not met directly since the opening weeks of Russia’s full-scale invasion, which began in February 2022.
The May and June talks led to the exchange of thousands of prisoners of war and the remains of dead soldiers, but any breakthrough on a ceasefire or eventual peace deal has proved elusive — despite continued pressure from the Trump administration.
The White House is pushing for an immediate ceasefire, a stance backed by Ukraine. But Russia has so far dodged committing to the proposal, with President Vladimir Putin saying various issues need to be addressed before the fighting can be paused.
Trump has appeared in recent months increasingly frustrated by Russia’s intransigence, plus by its nightly drone and missile strikes across Ukraine.
Earlier this month, Trump set a 50-day deadline for Moscow to agree to a ceasefire, threatening fresh sanctions and tariffs if it failed to do so. Trump also announced new military support for Kyiv, with a particular focus on strengthening Ukraine’s anti-drone and anti-missile defenses.
On Monday, Zelenskyy said Kyiv’s goals from the coming talks would be “the return of prisoners, the return of children who were abducted by Russia and the preparation of the leaders’ meeting,” the last referring to his repeated offers of an in-person meeting with Putin.
In a Tuesday social media post, Zelenskyy said Umerov will lead the Ukrainian delegation. Representatives from Ukrainian intelligence, its Foreign Ministry and the president’s office will also attend, he said.
“Our position is fully transparent,” Zelenskyy said. “Ukraine never wanted this war and it is Russia that must end the war that it started.”
On Sunday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov addressed Trump’s ultimatum — issued earlier this month — for Russia to agree to a ceasefire within 50 days or face more sanctions.
“Everyone is already used to his rather tough and straightforward rhetoric,” Peskov told journalists. “At the same time, he confirms his intentions to do everything possible to contribute to peaceful settlement.”
“In fact, President Putin has repeatedly spoken about his desire to transfer Ukrainian settlement to a peaceful route as soon as possible,” Peskov added. “This is a long process, it requires effort, and it is not easy. And, most likely, more and more people in Washington understand this.”
As to a possible meeting between Trump and Putin, Peskov replied, “It is possible, and over time it will definitely happen. It is necessary.”
“Perhaps it will be necessary for the fixation of some major agreements, which will be achieved over time, after a huge amount of work has been done,” he continued. “But this time has not yet come. This work is yet to be done.”
“Russia is ready to move fast,” Peskov said. “The main thing for us is to achieve our goals. Our goals are clear, obvious, they do not change. But the process depends not only on us.”
Expectations for this week’s talks are not high in Ukraine, according to Oleksandr Merezhko, a member of the Ukrainian parliament and the chair of the body’s foreign affairs committee.
“I don’t expect anything serious from these negotiations,” Merezhko told ABC News.
“In my opinion, Russia will be using these negotiations to prolong offensive operations during summer,” he added. “Putin has not given up his goal to subjugate the whole of Ukraine and is not interested in serious negotiations.”
“Putin will use these 50 days to the maximum,” Merezhko added.
(LONDON) — The White House confirmed on Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s administration froze the shipment of some air defense and precision guided weapons that were on track to be sent to Ukraine.
Officials said the decision followed an assessment of U.S. stockpiles.
“This decision was made to put America’s interests first following a DOD review of our nation’s military support and assistance to other countries across the globe,” said White House spokesperson Anna Kelly.
“The strength of the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned — just ask Iran,” she added in a statement sent to reporters.
Politico first reported the decision. It was not immediately clear whether other shipments of weapons would be released or how much was paused.
The Pentagon declined to provide additional details about the decision.
“America’s military has never been more ready and more capable thanks to President Trump and Secretary Hegseth’s leadership,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement.
“Our service members are fully equipped to deter against any threat and the Senate’s recent passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill ensures that our weapons and defense systems are modernized to protect against 21st century threats for generations to come.”
Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby provided an updated statement Wednesday saying the military is continuing to provide Trump “with robust options to continue military aid to Ukraine, consistent with his goal of bringing this tragic war to an end.”
Mykhailo Podolyak — a top adviser to Ukraine’s presidential office — denied that the U.S. will end its supply air defenses to Ukraine. Speaking on Ukrainian television on Wednesday, Podolyak said negotiations are ongoing on how to provide them, including potential purchases by Kyiv.
“America will not abandon its support for Ukraine in protecting civilians from Russian strikes,” Podolyak said. “There are enough anti-missile systems and missiles for them in U.S. warehouses.”
“Negotiations on their supply to Ukraine, including on a commercial basis, are ongoing,” Podolyak said.
Ukraine’s Defense Ministry also commented on the reports, saying in a post to Telegram it “has not received any official notification regarding the suspension or revision of delivery schedules for the agreed defense assistance.” The ministry said it requested a phone call with its U.S. counterparts “to further clarify the details.”
“For Ukraine, it is critically important to maintain resilience, continuity, and predictability in the provision of the agreed defense assistance — especially in strengthening our air defense systems,” the ministry said.
“We are grateful to the United States for all its support and highly value the efforts of our American partners aimed at achieving genuine peace. We emphasize that the path to ending the war lies through consistent and collective pressure on the aggressor, as well as through continued support for Ukraine.”
Oleksandr Merezhko, a member of the Ukrainian parliament representing President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s party and the chair of the body’s foreign affairs committee, told ABC News that the reports are “concerning, of course, but I hope that it’s some kind of technical delay.”
“If not, then it might have negative impact on our defense capabilities — especially when it comes to air defense,” Merezhko added. Any hint of a delay in aid, the lawmaker warned, would “embolden” Russian President Vladimir Putin “to intensify bombardments.”
The military shipment was frozen comes just a week after Trump signaled his openness to selling Patriot missiles to Ukraine.
After meeting with Zelenskyy at the NATO summit in the Netherlands, Trump said, “They do want to have the anti-missile, missiles,” Trump said of Ukraine. “As they call them the Patriots, and we’re going to see if we can make some available.”
“You know, they’re very hard to get. We need them too. We were supplying them to Israel, and they’re very effective, 100% effective. Hard to believe how effective,” Trump said.
“As far as money going, we’ll see what happens. There’s a lot of spirit,” Trump added.
The Patriot system is especially valuable to Ukraine, having been used to down Russian ballistic missiles, drones and aircraft since arriving in the country in the spring of 2023.
Russia is intensifying its near-nightly drone and missile attacks on cities and targets all across Ukraine.
June saw Moscow set a new monthly record for the number of long-range drones and missiles launched into Ukraine — 5,438 drones and 239 missiles — according to figures published by the Ukrainian air force.
The U.S. remained the most generous single contributor of aid to Ukraine as of April 2025, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a research group based in Germany that tracks support from foreign governments toward Ukraine.
The U.S. has contributed around $130 billion in total aid to Ukraine since 2022, of which $74 billion is military assistance. Combined, European Union nations have contributed more overall — $157 billion — but less than the U.S. on the military front, at slightly less than $73 billion.
Ukraine’s budget for military and security spending approved by lawmakers in late 2024 was around $53.7 billion.
Trump has repeatedly raised the prospect of curtailing or ending U.S. military support for Kyiv, both on the campaign trail and since returning to office in January. A nine-month pause on U.S. aid in 2024, due to a gridlocked Congress, forced Kyiv to consider a future without American assistance.
Those fears materialized in March 2025 when Trump imposed a week-long freeze on all American military aid and intelligence sharing with Ukraine. The flow soon resumed, but Trump’s frustration has only deepened as U.S.-brokered peace talks floundered.
The administration approved a $50 million sale of military aid to Ukraine in April, but only after Kyiv signed off on a controversial minerals sharing deal.
The White House is also yet to use some $3.9 billion earmarked to fund military aid to Ukraine — to be drawn from existing U.S. stocks, meaning it can be delivered quickly — that former President Joe Biden was not able to spend before the end of his term.
Zelenskyy said early this year that American aid accounts for 30% of Ukrainian weaponry. Though other estimates go as low as 20%, Washington remains a key benefactor — particularly for advanced weapons systems for which Ukraine has no domestically- or European-produced analogues.
-ABC News’ Anne Flaherty, Kelsey Walsh, Molly Nagle, Patrick Reevell and Ellie Kaufman contributed to this report.
