Shortly after Germany announced a $3 billion military aid package to aid Kyiv in its fight against the Russian invasion, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had important discussions with German leaders in Berlin.
Weapons. “Already in Berlin. a strong package. Reconstruction. Air defense. After arriving in Italy under heavy security on May 14, Zelenskyy tweeted about the EU, NATO, and security.
Zelenskyy was greeted by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at Schloss Bellevue, his official house in Berlin, where the two leaders were due to meet with four advisors each.
Before holding private meetings with the Ukrainian president, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz welcomed him at the chancellery with military honors.
Zelenskyy is additionally anticipated to fly to Aachen to accept the esteemed Charlemagne Prize.
Zelenskyy signed the guest book at the residence of the German president and thanked Germany.
Zelenskyy noted that Germany “proved to be our true friend and reliable ally, which stands decisively side-by-side with the Ukrainian people in the struggle to defend freedom and democratic values” through the most trying period in modern Ukrainian history.
Prior to his visit, Germany unveiled a fresh $3 billion military aid package for Ukraine that included tanks, anti-aircraft weapons, and ammunition.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius issued a statement saying, “We all hope for a rapid end to this terrible war by Russia against the Ukrainian people, but unfortunately this is not in sight.”
The package comprises four extra Iris-T antiaircraft systems with ammunition, additional artillery ammunition, 20 Marder infantry fighting vehicles, 30 Leopard 1 tanks, 15 Gepard anti-aircraft tanks, 200 reconnaissance drones, and more than 200 armored combat and logistical vehicles.
Many Ukrainians have criticized Germany for being reluctant to transfer large amounts of military hardware to Kyiv for the country’s conflict with Russian forces. The most recent aid initiative represents Berlin’s largest since the February 2022 invasion.
After receiving robust backing from Italian politicians in Rome and at the Vatican on May 13, Zelenskyy traveled to Germany. Pope Francis had called for “humanitarian gestures toward the most fragile persons, innocent victims of the conflict.”
On the battlefield, the TASS news agency reported that at least one Russian SU-34 warplane and a military Mi-8 helicopter had crashed in the Bryansk region bordering Ukraine, with other reports indicating the aircraft had been shot down.
Later, the Russian publication Kommersant said that on May 13, a second Mi-8 helicopter and a Russian SU-35 fighter also crashed, though this information was not immediately confirmed.
Regarding the reports, Ukraine made no comments. In general, Kiev refrains from making direct remarks about any events taking place inside Russian territory.
If the report of the aircraft being shot down is accurate, it would be a tremendous victory for the Ukrainian military and a humiliation for the Kremlin.
On May 14, the Ukrainian air force said that during the most recent Russian aerial assault, Ukrainian forces intercepted and destroyed three missiles and 25 drones overnight.
The air force claimed that Russia attacked “from various directions with Shahed attack drones, Kalibr missiles from ships in the Black Sea, and cruise missiles from Tu-95 strategic aircraft.”
Since the beginning of May, Russia has escalated the amount of missile and drone strikes, which Ukrainian authorities relate to Moscow’s concern over an anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive.
Russian missiles fired late on May 13 struck Ternopil, a city in western Ukraine, the home of the electro-pop duo Tvorchi, who will represent Ukraine this year at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2023, according to local authorities.
Because Ukraine, last year’s victors, was unable to host it owing to the war, the competition was taking place in Britain at the time of the assault.
Two persons were hurt as a result of the strike, which targeted warehouses owned by businesses and a nonprofit organization in Ternopil, local officials said on Telegram.
The British envoy to Kiev, Melinda Simmons, lauded Tvorchi for their entry in the Eurovision Song Contest.
The staging was superb. And significant since Ternopil, where they attended university, was the target of Russian missiles this evening, Simmons tweeted.
