Ukraine today is, in many ways, following the path that Israel has taken over the 78 years of its existence, said the Israeli ambassador to Ukraine during a ceremony marking Israel’s Independence Day.
“There are few countries in the world that understand each other better than Israel and Ukraine. In recent years, air raid sirens have often sounded simultaneously in Israel and Ukraine,” the ambassador said, addressing representatives of the Ukrainian government, the diplomatic corps, and Israel’s partners in Ukraine.
According to him, Ukraine’s successes in developing defense technologies “cannot fail to impress.”
The diplomat noted that the past year has been difficult for both countries, particularly for bilateral relations.
“The relationship between our countries is very close and often resembles a family bond. As in any family, difficulties sometimes arise, and we occasionally need the help of a ‘family therapist,’” he said.
The ambassador emphasized that in diplomacy, as in medicine, the principle of “do no harm” is crucial. According to him, during his nearly five years of service in Ukraine, he has strived to adhere to this principle.
In his speech, the diplomat also mentioned Golda Meir, who was born in Kyiv, and quoted one of her famous phrases: “Pessimism is a luxury that Jews can never afford.”
“Today, this applies equally to both Israelis and Ukrainians. I admire the resilience of our peoples, their ability to remain optimistic despite everything,” the ambassador noted.
He expressed confidence that, despite wars and terror, Israel and Ukraine will remain free and independent.
The diplomat also announced that his term in Ukraine is coming to an end in the near future.
“To say that this term has been special is an understatement. And yet, I regret only one thing: that peace has not come before the end of my work in Ukraine. I appeal to those on whom this depends: you still have three months. Now is the time to intensify these efforts,” he said.
The ambassador thanked the staff of the Israeli Embassy in Ukraine for their work in preserving and developing Israeli-Ukrainian relations, as well as partners and organizations that support cooperation between the two countries, including Nativ, Keren Kayemet LeIsrael, Keren HaYesod, Keren HaYedidut, the Joint, and Sohnut.
He also expressed his gratitude to the participants in the organization of the gala evening, including Honorary Consuls Oleg Vishnyakov and Andriy Rykota, Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Israel Ofer Kerzner, President of the Benish Group Haim Benesh, President of the Ukrainian Mineral Waters Corporation Hanna Kotlyarevska, and MTB Bank.
Israel celebrates Independence Day as the country’s main national holiday. In 2026, Israel will mark the 78th anniversary of the declaration of independence.
Diplomatic relations between Ukraine and the State of Israel were established on December 26, 1991, shortly after Ukraine’s declaration of independence. The Embassy of Ukraine in Tel Aviv began operations in October 1992, and the Embassy of Israel in Kyiv was opened in 1993. Since then, the countries have been developing political dialogue, humanitarian, cultural, and economic cooperation, as well as maintaining active ties between Ukrainian and Israeli societies.
Serbian Foreign Minister Marko Đurić has stated that Belgrade hopes to confirm Ukraine’s participation in the specialised Expo 2027 exhibition, which is due to take place in the Serbian capital from 15 May to 15 August 2027, according to the Telegram channel ‘Serbian Economist’.
Đurić posted this on X following a meeting with Ukraine’s Ambassador to Serbia, Oleksandr Litvinenko. According to the Serbian Foreign Minister, the parties discussed further intensifying political dialogue, supporting bilateral political consultations and improving trade cooperation between the two countries.
He also thanked Ukraine for its principled stance on the issue of respecting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Serbia.
“As Serbia and Ukraine traditionally enjoy very good relations, we hope to confirm Ukraine’s participation in the upcoming EXPO 2027 specialised exhibition,” the Serbian Foreign Minister emphasised.
For Belgrade, Ukraine’s potential participation in Expo 2027 has not only diplomatic but also economic significance. Serbia is seeking to use the exhibition as a tool for expanding trade, investment and logistics ties, as well as a platform for promoting the country as a regional hub for the Western Balkans.
For Ukraine, participation in Expo 2027 could provide an opportunity to present in Serbia not only a national pavilion but also a business programme focused on reconstruction, the agro-industrial sector, energy, IT, construction materials, logistics and industrial cooperation.
Expo 2027 Belgrade will be held under the theme “Play for Humanity: Sport and Music for All”. It will be the first specialised Expo hosted by Serbia and the region of the former Yugoslavia. According to the Bureau International des Expositions, the Belgrade site is set to welcome over 130 countries, more than 6 million visitors and over 8,000 events during the 93-day programme.
According to the official Expo 2027 website, 137 countries have formally confirmed their participation to date. These include Japan, South Korea, China, Turkey, Hungary, Austria, Switzerland, Slovakia, Azerbaijan, Ecuador, Monaco, as well as a number of countries from Africa, Asia, Oceania and Latin America. In March 2026, Belgrade also hosted the second international meeting of Expo 2027 participants, which, according to the Serbian government, was attended by representatives from 138 countries.
A distinctive feature of the Belgrade Expo is that it is intended to be not a general world exhibition, but a specialised Expo – that is, a more focused international event with a limited theme and duration. For Serbia, this is the largest image-building and infrastructure project of the decade: it involves the construction of a new exhibition complex in Surčin, the development of transport infrastructure, the hotel sector, the city’s economy and Belgrade’s international positioning.
Slovakia has reopened border crossings with Ukraine that had previously been closed due to a massive airstrike on border regions, DennikN reports.
“Border crossings with Ukraine are open again in both directions; according to police, the situation remains calm for now,” the report states.
Border processing resumed at 5:47 p.m. Kyiv time. According to police, the crossings had been temporarily closed on the Ukrainian side.
As previously reported, the Slovak side closed all border checkpoints on the border with Ukraine on Wednesday, according to Slovakia’s Financial Administration.
On Wednesday, the Slovak authorities closed all border checkpoints on the border with Ukraine, according to the Slovak Financial Administration.
“For security reasons, all checkpoints on the border with Ukraine are closed starting today at 3:00 p.m. (4:00 p.m. Kyiv time) until further notice,” the statement said.
Artem Bidenko, president of the Ukrainian Publishers Association (UPA), states that pirated publications account for nearly a third of the book market, and most of them are sold through marketplaces and websites.
“When a Ukrainian book is pirated on the day of its release, legal publishers are physically unable to purchase the rights for an official translation—the rights holder sees that the market is flooded with counterfeits and refuses. This is how legal translation is systematically being killed off. This is how authors don’t receive royalties. This is how translators don’t receive fees. This is how the state loses tax revenue. And this is how readers end up with machine translations ‘on toilet paper’ instead of literature. According to our estimates, nearly a third of the market consists of illegal content,” Bidenko wrote on Facebook.
According to him, most illegal publications are sold through marketplaces and websites that are easily found via search engines.
“And it is Google that is currently the main sponsor of piracy in Ukraine, paradoxical as it may seem. Because the scheme is perfectly designed to bypass local blocks. The SBU blocks a domain—pirates register a new one within a day. The State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting blocks that one—the next one appears. At the level of Ukrainian internet providers, it’s an endless game of cat and mouse. But all these stores thrive on Google—through indexing, through Google Shopping, through ads, through reviews on Google Maps,” Bidenko noted.
In his view, if Google begins to heed official requests from the State Committee for Television and Radio Broadcasting and the SBU and de-index domains with confirmed piracy, it will become technically unprofitable for networks to launch yet another site, because without search engine results, no one will find them.
“This is a working mechanism. It is already used for the DMCA in the U.S., for child safety, and for sanctions lists. Today, the industry, together with the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Education and Science, has appealed to Google Ukraine with a request to implement a mechanism for blocking illegal content,” said the president of the UIA.
In the “Medium- and Long-Term Market” section of the UEB, trading continued for May and June 2026 contracts. In total, eight companies placed offers to buy or sell natural gas: VK Ukrnaftoburinnya, GTS Operator of Ukraine, Ukrtransinvest, and others. During the week, 2,600,000 cubic meters of natural gas were sold in the section. Positions by the Ukrainian GTS Operator were successful. Additionally, heat-generating enterprises, namely Cherkasyteplokomunenergo and the “City Heating Networks” Concern, purchased natural gas on the exchange for the first time to generate electricity. Selling prices ranged from 22,050 to 22,700 UAH/thousand cubic meters excluding VAT, with a downward trend.
On the UEB short-term natural gas market, participants placed bids on the intraday market and the “day-ahead” market. A total of 39 deals were concluded, with a total volume of 2,227 thousand cubic meters.
Last week, European gas prices were affected by conflicting news from the Middle East, while in some markets, M+1 gas contracts experienced significant volatility—reaching 3-week highs and 2-week lows over several consecutive days. Geopolitical turmoil, uncertainty over winter supplies, and growing structural demand mean that conditions could change rapidly.
On Thursday, gas prices fell significantly for most 2026 contracts following news of a potential agreement between the U.S. and Iran to end the conflict and ensure the free flow of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz: Following the successful passage of the Liberian-flagged LNG carrier Mubaraz through the strait, it appears that other loaded LNG carriers have also passed through.
On Friday morning, DA gas prices continued this trend. This decline reflects sentiment regarding comments from various news outlets confirming Iran’s readiness to negotiate regarding its nuclear program—the main source of disagreement between the parties—which increases the likelihood of resolving the conflict. This breaking news was partially offset by reduced flows from Oseberg in Norway two days before the scheduled start of a maintenance period, which strengthened the gas system on May 9.
Short-term prices demonstrated their ability to react quickly to weather conditions and system imbalances. Even outside of peak winter periods, volatility remains a defining feature of the market. A colder May forecast is driving additional demand, while wind power generation in Europe is running below average. The decline in renewable energy production is tightening the power system and forcing greater reliance on gas-fired power plants.
Hedge funds have increased their net long positions in the European gas market, according to the latest Commitments of Traders report. With little change in short positions, the funds added another 26 TWh of long positions, bringing the total net long position to 288 TWh.
EU gas storage is at 34% capacity, but gas is being injected at a rapid pace—approximately 10% per month. This has calmed the market in the short term and helped shore up prices, despite broader risks.
Natural gas imports from Europe stood at 0.11 (+0.3) million cubic meters per day. Imports came from Poland and Hungary. There were no exports from the customs warehouse. Ukraine’s storage facilities held 10.33 (+1.48%) billion cubic meters of natural gas. There were no withdrawals from UGS facilities; instead, injections were observed—about 31 million cubic meters per day.
