German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made an unexpected visit to Kiev on Monday (02), promising that his country will remain Ukraine’s biggest supporter in Europe and promising to deliver military aid worth 650 million euros this month.
The visit, the second since Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago, signals Berlin’s support at a time of uncertainty ahead of Donald Trump’s return to the White House and as Russian forces steadily seize territory.
Scholz will hold talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is expected to press NATO to invite the country to join the military alliance at a meeting in Brussels this week.
The visit could also offer a way for the German chancellor to try to bolster his foreign policy credentials as he faces a tough re-election battle in an early vote in February following the collapse of his coalition in November.
His own record of support for Ukraine has been criticized both by those who want him to do more to help Kiev and, on the other hand, by voters who want Germany to stop sending weapons and aid to Ukraine.
While touting Germany as Ukraine’s second-largest arms supplier after the United States, Scholz has repeatedly refused to send the Taurus cruise missile to Ukraine, fearing it could lead his country into direct conflict. with Russia.
He was also criticized by allies, including Zelensky himself, for holding a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin for the first time in nearly two years in November, which critics saw as a domestic political aim.
“Germany will remain Ukraine’s biggest supporter in Europe,” Scholz wrote in X, adding that he would announce during his meeting with Zelensky “more military equipment worth 650 million euros, which will be delivered in December.”
In the shadow of the election
Support for Ukraine is becoming a major issue in Germany’s federal elections.
Friedrich Merz, the leader of the conservative opposition who is on track to oust Scholz, said Germany should send Taurus missiles and over the weekend accused the chancellor of scaremongering on the issue.
No program has been published for Scholz’s visit to Ukraine, but visiting leaders typically hold a joint news conference with Zelensky during trips to Kiev.
The visit comes a day after António Costa, the new president of the European Council, and the new European Union foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, visited the Ukrainian capital on their first day in office to show support.
Moscow’s troops have been capturing village after village in eastern Ukraine, part of an effort to fully take over the industrial region of Donbas, as Russian airstrikes continue to pound Ukraine’s struggling power grid as winter approaches.
In November, Joe Biden’s administration granted Ukraine permission to use Western weapons to further attack Russian territory. Moscow responded by attacking Ukraine with a new intermediate-range missile and threatened to attack government facilities in Kiev.
Kiev has long demanded that Moscow withdraw all troops from its territory. Officials also want Western security guarantees comparable to NATO membership to prevent Russia from attacking again.
Moscow, which controls almost a fifth of Ukrainian territory, demands recognition of the annexation of Ukrainian lands and Ukraine’s permanent neutrality.
Last week, Zelensky floated the idea of granting Ukraine NATO membership even as Russia occupies some captured territories, a solution he said could end the “hot stage” of the war.
In comments on Sunday (01), Zelensky clarified that any invitation to join the alliance must extend to all Ukrainian territory, even though the alliance’s collective defense agreement may not operate in areas occupied by Russian forces.
This content was originally published in Germany announces military aid of 650 million euros to Ukraine on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
