According to the “Serbian Economist,” Serbia is ready to provide its territory as a venue for negotiations between Ukraine and Russia if both sides consider Belgrade’s involvement to be useful, said Andon Sapundži, Serbia’s ambassador to Ukraine.
“If there is a need for a venue for dialogue or negotiations, Serbia is ready to offer it,” the diplomat said in an interview with the Ukrainian publication “Apostrophe,” published on August 27.
At the same time, the ambassador emphasized that Belgrade has no intention of imposing its own terms for a settlement on the parties and believes that decisions regarding the start of negotiations, their format, and conditions should be made directly by Ukraine and Russia.
Sapundži also rejected the interpretation of Belgrade’s position as a call for Ukraine to cede part of its territory in order to end the war.
According to him, Serbia consistently supports Ukraine’s territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.
At the same time, Belgrade does not consider itself a party to the war and hopes to maintain the ability to engage in political dialogue with both sides.
In early August, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Belgrade. This was the Ukrainian president’s first visit to Serbia in eight years. According to Sapundži, during the visit, Zelenskyy and Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić held three separate meetings in less than a day, including a nearly four-hour informal conversation over dinner, official talks, and a one-on-one meeting.
The Embassy of Ukraine in India, which also represents Ukraine in Nepal, has sent two staff members—including a consul—to that country to assist Ukrainian citizens following a massive flash flood and landslides in the Rasuwa district of Bagmati Province.
According to the embassy, Ukrainian diplomats will work directly on the ground in coordination with the relevant Nepalese authorities, local rescue services, and the Honorary Consul of Ukraine. The primary task is to locate Ukrainian citizens with whom contact has been lost and to provide them with consular assistance.
According to the latest data from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, 55 Ukrainian citizens are considered missing as a result of the natural disaster in Nepal. These include two tourist groups consisting of 47 and seven people, respectively, as well as one Ukrainian woman who was part of a foreign tourist group. As of August 27, there is no information regarding Ukrainian citizens who have died or been injured.
According to information received by the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs from local authorities, more than 1,100 people are considered missing following the massive flooding and landslides, including over 700 tourists from nearly 30 countries. At the time of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry’s announcement, at least 165 fatalities had been confirmed.
The natural disaster occurred on August 26 in the Rasuwa mountain district near the Nepal-Tibet border. A powerful torrent of water, rocks, and soil swept through the valleys of the Bhote Koshi and Trishuli rivers, damaging settlements, roads, bridges, power facilities, and tourist infrastructure.
According to the latest expert assessments, one of the likely causes of the disaster may have been the collapse of a section of a glacier along with a mass of rocks and snow. Rescue operations are being hampered by damage to transportation and communications infrastructure.
The Embassy has urged Ukrainian citizens currently in Nepal to inform diplomats of their whereabouts and condition at the earliest opportunity, to follow the recommendations of local authorities and rescue services, and to avoid visiting the affected areas.
Relatives of Ukrainians with whom contact has been lost and who may have been in the disaster zone are asked to provide diplomats with information about their last known whereabouts.
Hotline of the Embassy of Ukraine in India: +91 92055 07157 (Viber, Telegram), email: consul_in@mfa.gov.ua.
Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Nepal: +977 1 441 6544, +977 1 441 6767.
24-hour hotline of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine: +38 044 238 1588, email: cons_or@mfa.gov.ua.
Original source — Embassy of Ukraine in the Republic of India, statement dated August 27, 2026. Additional up-to-date information on Ukrainian citizens was provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine to the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
In the EF EPI 2025 profile, Ukraine scored 526 points compared to the global average of 488. At the same time, within Ukraine’s overall score, reading scored 544 points and speaking scored 477. The country looks decent in the table but is noticeably weaker in the skill that recruiters hear first.
This explains a familiar scenario. A candidate reads documentation, corresponds with clients, and honestly lists B2 on their resume. At the interview, they’re asked a simple “Tell me about a difficult decision” and start crafting their answer as if they were taking a written exam. They have a thought. They have enough words, too. The sentence finally comes out after the room has already become awkward.
The index is useful for comparing large groups. But EF itself warns: the data comes from people who voluntarily take online tests, so the sample isn’t representative of the country’s entire population. It’s a barometer of a specific audience. It’s not a census of every adult.
Another pitfall lies in the average score. It combines reading, listening, writing, and speaking into a single score. This is convenient for a country. For a job opening, it’s almost useless. An analyst might be brilliant at reading reports but slow at explaining conclusions. A sales manager might be good at keeping a conversation going but overlook the details of a contract. An identical overall score does not make them interchangeable.
It is precisely this gap in skills that explains why the score isn’t mentioned in a job interview. A job interview tests the ability to speak quickly under pressure, to elaborate on an example, to ask for clarification when a question is unclear, and to stay on track after being interrupted. No country’s ranking in the table will perform these tasks for a candidate.
In the My English by Business Language summary, national self-assessment is presented alongside the EF EPI profile. This combination is important: 43.8% of adults in the 2023 Razumkov Center study said they knew no English at all, while the international index reflects motivated participants in online testing. Both figures are accurate within their own contexts. They cannot be combined into a single portrait of the “average Ukrainian.”
For a candidate, a brief written response to a real job-related question is more useful than yet another generic test. Listen to yourself and note three things: where your train of thought stalled, where a word was accurate but came too late, and where your example fell apart due to a lack of structure. That’s already a working profile. The letter next to your name will say less.
A failed interview also doesn’t always mean a person needs a language course. The reason could be a weak professional example, lack of product knowledge, anxiety, or a confusing question from the recruiter. A language course won’t fix any of these.
Before your next interview, don’t try to “brush up on your English” in one evening. Record a single answer about a difficult decision and remove everything from it that doesn’t help explain your choice. That’s exactly what the recruiter will hear once the rating is left at the door.
My English by Business Language
Due to problems with storing and exporting the harvest caused by the closure of Black Sea ports, there is a risk that the planted area for the upcoming harvest could be reduced by 5–7 million hectares, said Taras Vysotsky, Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food.
“The biggest challenge today is compensating for interest rates on loans. If we do not support the financial stability of farmers, there is a risk that the area sown for the upcoming harvest will be reduced by 5–7 million hectares,” the Ministry of Agrarian Policy’s press service quoted Vysotsky as saying during his meeting with the UN System Coordinator in Ukraine, Matthias Schmale, and the leadership of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP).
The minister emphasized that Ukraine currently faces two key challenges: preventing the spoilage of the harvest that has already been gathered, ensuring storage capacity, and providing farmers with working capital.
“According to our estimates, the storage capacity deficit could reach 11 million metric tons as early as this fall, and the funding requirement for this area is $44 million,” he noted.
According to Vysotsky, Ukraine has sent an official request to the European Union for the allocation of EUR220 million to compensate for interest rates on bank loans for farmers.
Another important topic of the talks, he said, was the willingness of UN agencies to become more actively involved in resolving systemic problems caused by the war and overcoming its consequences, the statement noted.
UN representatives confirmed their readiness to respond promptly to Ukraine’s urgent requests, mobilize resources from the international community, expand operational assistance, and support Ukraine in overcoming humanitarian and economic challenges.
Following the meeting, the parties agreed on a joint action plan to attract additional donor funding from international financial institutions, including the World Bank, as well as private humanitarian foundations.
According to Fixygen, Ukrainian Investment and Analytical Company LLC (UIAK, TM PlanetAvto), a member of the non-bank financial group “PLANETGROUP,” began the initial offering of its debut Series A corporate bond issue totaling 50 million UAH on August 25.
Under the terms of the issue, investors are being offered 50,000 bonds with a par value of 1,000 UAH each. The interest rate for the first four interest periods—that is, the first year of circulation—is set at 25% per annum in UAH, with the coupon paid quarterly.
The initial offering will run from August 25 to September 8, 2026. The total term of the bonds is five years, with an annual offer allowing holders to present the securities to the issuer for redemption at par value.
After the first four interest periods, the rate will be determined in accordance with the terms of the prospectus and may range from 5% to 35% per annum.
The investment firm “UNIVER Capital” is acting as the organizer and underwriter of the offering. Individuals and legal entities may submit applications to purchase bonds via the UNIVER app or the investor’s account. Settlements during the initial offering are conducted on a DvP (“delivery versus payment”) basis.
Following the completion of the initial offering, “UNIVER Capital” plans to maintain two-way quotes for the bonds on the secondary market.
UIAC states that it plans to allocate 100% of the funds raised toward expanding its automotive financial leasing portfolio. The company has been operating in the market since 2013 and holds a license to provide financial leasing services.
As reported by Open4Business, in 2025, UIAK’s revenue grew nearly 2.9-fold—to 40.68 million UAH, with net income totaling approximately 3.02 million UAH. According to the offering prospectus, the company forecasts revenue of 50 million UAH and net income of approximately 5 million UAH for 2026.
According to data provided by the group, UIAK’s assets as of the end of 2025 totaled approximately 27.2 million UAH, and its equity was approximately 21 million UAH.
The company’s main areas of activity are financial leasing and automobile sales. UIAK is integrated into the infrastructure of the PlanetAvto automotive marketplace.
Andriy Kovtun and Tetiana Yagupova are co-owners of the company on an equal basis. Kovtun is also the controlling shareholder of the non-bank financial group “PLANETGROUP.”
The group is simultaneously developing its fundraising efforts through the corporate bond market and other participants in the ecosystem. In August, Avtokredit Plus LLC (PlanetAvto) began placing Series C bonds totaling 100 million UAH with an interest rate of 24% per annum for the first four interest periods. The proceeds from this issuance are also being directed toward the development of auto financial leasing.
Thus, the total volume of the two current bond programs of PlanetAvto Group companies amounts to 150 million UAH.
Open4Business previously reported on August 17, 2026, that UIAK had registered its debut five-year bond issue worth 50 million UAH.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Moldovan President Maia Sandu, and Romanian President Nicușor Dan will hold a trilateral meeting in Chisinau on Thursday, August 27, as part of the events marking the 35th anniversary of Moldova’s independence.
According to the schedule released by the Romanian Presidential Administration, the trilateral meeting between Zelenskyy, Sandu, and Dan is scheduled for 6:45 p.m. at the Presidential Palace in Chisinau. Following the talks, the three heads of state will make joint statements to the press.
The official program from the Moldovan side states that Sandu will meet with the Romanian president at 2:35 p.m. After bilateral talks, Sandu and Dan will take part in a military parade on the Great National Assembly Square, dedicated to the 35th anniversary of the country’s independence. The presidents are scheduled to begin their participation in the parade at 4:45 p.m.
The Moldovan president will meet with Zelenskyy at 6:00 p.m., followed by a trilateral meeting of delegations from Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania.
In the evening, Zelenskyy, Sandu, and Dan will also take part in festive events on the Great National Assembly Square. After 9:00 p.m., the three presidents are scheduled to address the public.
On August 27, Moldova celebrates the 35th anniversary of the declaration of independence. The country’s parliament adopted the Declaration of Independence on August 27, 1991. This year’s events are taking place under the slogan “Independence Unites Us.”
Official source: Office of the President of the Republic of Moldova, statement dated August 26, 2026.
