Lagatar24 Desk
Kyiv, June 16: The leaders of France, Germany, Italy, and Romania arrived in Kyiv On Thursday, in an apparent display of European solidarity with Ukraine as it fights Russia’s invasion.
President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and Italian Premier Mario Draghi travelled to Kyiv together, according to the French president’s office, and Romanian President Klaus Iohannis will join them in the Ukrainian capital.
In the highest-profile Western visit to Kyiv since Russia pushed troops into Ukraine on February 24, European leaders are due to meet with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The visit takes place as EU leaders prepare to decide on Ukraine’s request to become a candidate for EU membership on June 23-24, and ahead of a key NATO meeting on June 29-30 in Madrid.
NATO defence ministers will gather in Brussels on Thursday to discuss additional military aid for Ukraine. The US and Germany announced fresh aid on Wednesday, with the US and its allies providing longer-range weapons that they claim can make a difference in a struggle where Ukrainian soldiers are outmanned and outgunned by their Russian invaders.
