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Media: Israel refuses Zelensky’s visit, says 'time not right'

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Media: Israel refuses Zelensky’s visit, says 'time not right'
President Volodymyr Zelensky and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meet at the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York, U.S., on Sept. 19, 2023. Image for illustrative purposes only. (The Prime Minister of Israel/Facebook)

Israel turned down Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky's request to make a solidarity visit to the country in the wake of Hamas' attack, telling him that the "time is not right," the Israeli news portal Ynet reported on Oct. 16, citing undisclosed sources.

The president was, however, told that the visit might be possible at a later date, the news outlet said.

Zelensky reportedly wanted to make the trip alongside U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken, who arrived in Israel on Oct. 16 to assure Tel Aviv of Washington's support in the ongoing Israel-Hamas War.

Previously, Ukraine's head of state denounced the attack launched against Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7 and voiced solidarity with Tel Aviv.

"Whoever uses terror is a criminal against the whole world. Whoever sponsors terrorism is a criminal against the whole world," Zelensky said on his Telegram channel.

Israel has expressed its support for Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression and provided humanitarian assistance but refused to send military aid, presumably to avoid antagonizing Russia, which has a strong military presence in neighboring Syria.

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Martin Fornusek

Senior News Editor

Martin Fornusek is a news editor at the Kyiv Independent. He has previously worked as a news content editor at the media company Newsmatics and is a contributor to Euromaidan Press. He was also volunteering as an editor and translator at the Czech-language version of Ukraïner. Martin studied at Masaryk University in Brno, Czechia, holding a bachelor's degree in security studies and history and a master's degree in conflict and democracy studies.

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