Ukraine: France, Germany, Italy, Poland leaders set to meet Zelenskyy in Kyiv as air raid sirens ring out
The visit will be the first by the men to the capital city since Russia invaded in late February
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The leaders of France, Italy and Germany arrived in Kyiv Thursday morning from Poland where they were expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a show of support.
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi rode in a train car together bound for the country's capital.
"It’s a message of European unity for the Ukrainian people, support now and in the future, because the weeks to come will be very difficult," Macron told reporters when they arrived.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Romanian President Klaus Iohannis took a separate train to meet the leaders.
"This illegal Russian aggression must stop!" Iohannis tweeted when he arrived.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi were seen in a train car together headed for Kyiv, Ukraine Thursday morning. (La Repubblica)
The visit will be the first by the men since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February and comes amid a fierce battle in the disputed Donbas region as the war extends into its fourth month, the AFP news agency reported.
It also marks the most high-profile diplomatic visit since the invasion.
Air raid sirens rang out while the men were in their hotel preparing for the meeting - not an infrequent occurrence in Kyiv.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Holding his hand over his heart as he left his Kyiv hotel, Macron said in English, "I want to show my admiration for the Ukrainian people."
French President Emmanuel Macron, centre, is escorted as he arrives at the Kyiv train station, Thursday, June 16, 2022. (Ludovic Marin, Pool via AP)
German news agency dpa quoted Scholz as saying that the leaders are seeking to show solidarity but also their commitment to keeping up their financial and humanitarian help for Ukraine, and their supply of weapons.
Scholz added that this support would continue "for as long as is necessary for Ukraine’s fight for independence."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Other world leaders like U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell have met with Zelenskyy in Kyiv.
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The trip was unannounced but Macron had already been visiting the region and French media has speculated he might go to Ukraine.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) attend a meeting, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine April 30, 2022. Picture taken April 30, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via REUTERS )
Macron said in Romania this week that Ukraine and Russia would eventually have to talk.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., pose for a photo in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Saturday, May 14. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)
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"At some point, when we will have helped Ukraine as much as possible to resist, when I hope Ukraine will have won and fighting will have stopped, we will have to negotiate," he told reporters, according to the Wall Street Journal. He was in the country visiting French troops.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Associated Press contributed to this report.