Zelensky to visit Israel in midst of ongoing war with Hamas - report

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to visit Israel next week, amidst the ongoing war over the past few weeks, according to an initial N12 report on Friday. 

Various sources already in the first week of the war reported that the Ukrainian President expressed interest in visiting Israel, but was rejected on the matter.

According to the report, there are advanced talks regarding the visit. Once agreed upon, the visit of the Ukrainian president is expected to take place on Monday or Tuesday.

Zelensky's reaction to October 7 massacre

In a speech delivered by Zelensky before the UN assembly, two days after the murderous massacre carried out by Hamas in the south of the country, he said that "Hamas and Russia are the same evil, and the only difference is that there is a terrorist organization that attacked Israel and here is a terrorist state that attacked Ukraine."

He has also made clear that "Israel's right to self-defense is unquestionable. All details surrounding this terrorist assault must be revealed so that the world knows and holds accountable everyone who supported and helped carry out the attack."

Relations between Israel and Ukraine have seen a few ups and downs since the Russian invasion at the end of February 2022. Zelensky has explicitly criticized Israel in the past for not providing sufficient military aid to the Ukrainians. 

Only a few weeks before the Hamas massacre, Zelensky met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a basement conference room at the United Nations, where the Ukrainian leader said that Ukraine "expects more" from Israel.

Ukraine has wanted to purchase Israeli defensive anti-missile systems.

Tovah Lazaroff contributed to this report.