German Chancellor Olaf Scholz made an unexpected visit to Kyiv on Monday - his first in 2.5 years. Upon arriving in the Ukrainian capital, he stated that Germany "will remain Ukraine's strongest supporter in Europe."
According to the German chancellor, Germany plans to supply Ukraine with arms worth 650 million euros by the end of the year. In total, since the beginning of Russia's full-scale aggression, Germany has allocated or plans to allocate nearly 28 billion euros in weapons and equipment to Kyiv.
Ukraine considers Germany's actions insufficient, criticizing Scholz for his reluctance to supply Taurus cruise missiles. The chancellor justifies his actions by the desire to avoid further escalation. In November, official Kyiv criticized Scholz's phone call with Vladimir Putin, as it, in the opinion of Ukrainian President Zelensky, weakens the Kremlin's international isolation.
Analysts believe that during the current visit of the German chancellor to Kyiv, Zelensky will raise the issue of Ukraine's NATO membership. The head of the German government arrived in Kyiv by train, and his visit was not announced in advance "for security reasons."