German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, is to travel to Ukraine and Russia on Monday on inaugural visits to the two countries amid heightened tensions in the region.
Baerbock is scheduled to meet with Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, and her counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba, in Kiev on Monday.
In addition to talks over the build-up of Russian troops on Ukraine’s border, Kiev’s calls for Germany to supply weapons, and the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.
Their discussions are also likely to be at the centre of their discussions.
Baerbock’s trip to Kiev takes place on the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Germany and Ukraine.
She was also due to meet with German representatives of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) observer mission.
In addition, a discussion on the Ukrainian hydrogen strategy was planned, a ministry spokesperson said.
In the afternoon, the minister plans to visit the monument of the Heavenly Hundred in the centre of Kiev, which remembers the dead in the pro-European revolution of 2014.
A day later, she would hold talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow.
Kuleba told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper that Ukraine expects “the new German Government to take a firm and clear course in the face of Russian threats and intimidation attempts together with Ukraine.’’
Ukraine’s ambassador in Berlin, Andriy Melnyk, called on Baerbock to assure the supply of weapons for national defence. (dpa/NAN)
