Oct. 25 (UPI) — Germany’s President Frank-Walter Steinmeier asked his residents to look “through the eyes of Ukrainians” during his visit to Kyiv on Tuesday morning during a surprise visit to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Steinmeier met with Zelensky and also examined war damage in the Chernihiv region. He had planned to visit Kyiv in April but was disinvited after Ukrainian officials accused past German leaders Gerhard Schröder and Angela Merkel of being soft on Russia under President Vladimir Putin.
“My message to the people of Ukraine is: You can count on Germany! We will continue to support Ukraine: militarily, politically, financially and in humanitarian regards,” Steinmeier said on social media through his spokesperson.
“And at the same time, my message to all Germans at home is: Let’s never forget what this war means for the people here. Despite all the hardships that the war also brings for us in Germany — let’s look through the eyes of the Ukrainians for a moment.”
Steinmeier said he will lead the network of cities helping Ukraine, especially in the upcoming winter months as the Russian military continue to target power infrastructure in the country.
“Many German partner cities are providing great help in this regard,” Steinmeier said. “Together with the President [Zelensky], I will take over the patronage of [German-Ukrainian] city partnership network. The more partnerships there are, the better it will be to get through the winter.”
Steinmeier was slated to visit Kyiv last Thursday, but his trip was postponed after Russia attacked Kyiv with missiles and drones in the days before.
