Ukraine's underground storage facilities are currently using 19.4% of their capacity. Almost 32%, or 2.79 bcm, less gas is available in the storages than in the previous year, according to the estimates.
The majority of Ukrainians, 71%, do not support holding elections before a full peace deal, even in the case of a ceasefire and security guarantees, according to a poll published by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) on May 14.
"He'd like me to be there, and that's a possibility. ... I don't know that he would be there if I'm not there. We're going to find out," U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One while traveling to Qatar, Reuters reported.
Trump has long demanded that NATO allies increase their military spending, previously calling for the alliance to raise its benchmark from 2% to 5% of GDP.
More than 1,000 Russian government entities and 1,200 private companies are involved in the economy of occupied Mariupol, a major southeastern city occupied by Russia after it invaded Ukraine in 2022, according to a research paper published on May 14.
The measures target almost 200 ships of Russia's "shadow fleet," 30 companies involved in sanctions evasion, 75 sanctions on entities and individuals linked to the Russian military-industrial complex, and more.
The government has approved "reform roadmaps in the rule of law, public administration, and democratic institutions, as well as Ukraine’s negotiation position," Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said.
The statement did not name the ex-official by name, but details of the case indicate it relates to Oleh Hladkovsky, a former deputy secretary of Ukraine's top security body who has been wanted since mid-April.
Brazilian President Lula da Silva claimed that Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha had appealed to his Brazilian counterpart, Mauro Vieira, to ask Putin if he was willing to conclude a peace agreement.
"Trump needs to believe that Putin actually lies," Zelensky told journalists in Kyiv. "And we should do our part. Sensibly approach this issue, to show that it’s not us that is slowing down the process."
Illustrative purposes only: 155 mm artillery shells that are ready to be shipped are stored at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on April 12, 2023. (Hannah Beier/Getty Images)
South Korea did not contribute to the Czech initiative to purchase artillery shells for the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Tomas Kopecny, Czech government commissioner for the restoration of Ukraine, said in an interview with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) on Nov. 19.
Czechia unveiled its initiative to jointly purchase artillery shells for Ukraine from undisclosed third countries earlier this year, amid shell shortages caused mainly by delays in U.S. assistance.
In October, Ukraine received over one-third of the 500,000 155 mm shells expected to be delivered under the Czech initiative by the end of 2024.
South Korea did not provide artillery shells of its own production, nor did it make financial contributions to the purchase of shells from other countries under the Czech initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine from third countries, according to Kopecny.
"So far, South Korea has not participated in the Czech initiative. From a financial point of view, they were not among the 16 countries that contributed, and they were not among the supplier countries from which we received the shells. This is the situation as of now," Kopecny said.
Thus, the official denied the information previously published in the German media Bild that South Korea was probably one of the ammunition suppliers under the Czech initiative.
Earlier, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported that South Korea had no plans to supply 155 mm shells to Ukraine amid reports of North Korean soldiers participating in the war.
Since the start of the full-scale war though, South Korean shells have reportedly been sent to Ukraine, but this was done so indirectly, through undisclosed U.S. purchases.
On Oct. 22, Seoul announced a possible revision of its support for Kyiv, including the provision of lethal weapons and personnel, depending on the situation in Ukraine.
Kateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
Sonya Bandouil
