Ukraine trip: Merz surprisingly meets Selenskyi in Kyiv - "Completely shaken"

Created: 05/04/2022 05:38

By: Stephanie Munk, Fabian Müller

Friedrich Merz visits Ukraine and also meets President Volodymyr Zelenskyj.

The news ticker on reactions in Germany to the Ukraine war.

• Ukraine conflict: Germany is concerned about the war in Ukraine and its consequences.

• Friedrich Merz in Ukraine:

  The CDU leader's first plans have been leaked

• Closed meeting of the federal government at Schloss Meseberg: SPD, Greens and FDP also want to discuss an oil embargo against Russia

• This

  news ticker on reactions from Germany in the Ukraine war

  is continuously updated.

  You can read the background to the Ukraine crisis here.

Update from May 3, 8:38 p.m .:

During his visit to Kiev, Friedrich Merz was dismayed at the destruction caused by the Russian war of aggression and accused Russia of “crimes”.

"I was really completely shaken here, I still am, you can't get these pictures out of your head," said Merz on Tuesday evening after a conversation with Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko.

In the Kiev suburb of Irpin, he saw that cultural centers, kindergartens and hospitals had also been hit and how the war was also directed against the civilian population.

"You can't just see something like that on television alone, you have to see it to grasp the whole tragedy of such attacks," said the opposition leader.

He reiterated his support for arms sales to Ukraine.

"I feel very much confirmed in the decision we made in the German Bundestag last week that we are helping this country," said Merz.

For this he experienced the gratitude of his interlocutors.

He also supported EU accession status for Ukraine.

Merz added that he had a conversation lasting more than an hour with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

However, he did not want to say anything publicly about the content, but first wanted to inform Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Regarding the criticism of the Ukrainian ambassador Andriy Melnyk on Scholz, Merz said: "I think we should now try rhetorically to get to a level where we don't make mutual help unnecessarily difficult." Melnyk had Scholz after his preliminary no to one Kyiv trip described as "offended liverwurst".

Merz in Ukraine: Prime Minister Schmyhal thanks German arms deliveries

Update from May 3, 7.45 p.m .:

The Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal thanked the CDU Chairman Friedrich Merz for the German support of Ukraine.

"I stressed the importance of increased sanctions (against Russia) and support for Ukraine's EU candidate status," Schmyhal wrote on Twitter Tuesday of a meeting with Merz in Kyiv.

He also thanked Ukraine for its military aid and support, he added.

Schmyhal published a picture that shows him talking to the CDU leader at a table.

Merz, the leader of the opposition in the Bundestag, also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as part of his visit to Kyiv.

The conversation lasted a little over an hour and took place in an “extraordinarily” good atmosphere, a spokesman for the CDU chairman said afterwards.

Ukraine trip: Merz surprisingly meets Selenskyi in Kyiv - "We are obliged to help"

Update from May 3, 5:28 p.m .:

During his visit to Ukraine, opposition leader Friedrich Merz also met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Selenskyj.

This is reported by the

newspaper.

For a long time it was unclear whether a meeting between the two politicians would take place.

According to the report, the meeting between Selenskyi and the head of the CDU on Tuesday afternoon lasted around an hour.

The conversation took place at Zelenskyi's official residence in Kyiv.

Merz previously visited the Kiev suburb of Irpin, where he spoke to the mayor, among others.

The CDU leader was shocked, but he was also "full of admiration" for the courage and will to rebuild the Ukrainians.

Merz continued: "We are obliged to help them with this."

On Tuesday afternoon, Merz published a video on the social network Twitter in which he said: "It's nice to be in this country." Regarding the course of his trip, he said: "Everything is safe, everything is fine, and the Ukrainian authorities are extremely cooperative. "

Update from May 3, 4:24 p.m .:

The Chancellor an “offended liver sausage”?

With this statement, the Ukrainian ambassador Andriy Melnyk offends.

Scholz has cross-party support, and numerous politicians have condemned Melnyk's verbal attack on Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

"Olaf Scholz is not a sausage, he is the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany," said Deputy FDP Chairman Wolfgang Kubicki of the

in Berlin, adding: "This must be respected."

Scholz had previously justified his reluctance to travel to Ukraine, which was under attack from Russia, by saying that Ukraine had canceled a planned trip by Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in mid-April.

This stands in the way of his journey, said Scholz.

The deputy leader of the Union faction, Johann Wadephul, criticized the ambassador's reaction.

"The tone is inappropriate," said the CDU politician to the

.

"Even in a special situation, diplomatic representatives should behave appropriately towards government officials."

Melnyk argued that it was about a war of annihilation in Ukraine, "It's not a kindergarten," he told the

.

At the same time, the diplomat emphasized that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would continue to be happy to receive Scholz in Kyiv.

The FDP politician Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann made a suggestion to resolve the upset: "Perhaps, dear Mr. Melnyk, you just apologize to the President and then politely invite the Chancellor to come," she told the

.

Ukraine cannot first uninvite the Federal President and then expect Scholz to travel to Kyiv.

Merz arrived in Ukraine despite urgent warnings - first plans leaked

May 3 update.

2:05 p.m .:

Opposition leader Friedrich Merz (CDU) visited the city of Irpin near Kiev, which was badly damaged in the Ukraine war, on his trip through Ukraine and promised her support.

"We are obliged to help this city to rebuild so that people can live and work here again," said the CDU leader.

Merz also said: "I am saddened by the victims, but I also admire what the army and Ukrainian soldiers have done here

The advance of Russian troops on Kyiv was stopped in Irpin, which deserves "every respect and great recognition."

Friedrich Merz, CDU party leader, surrounded by journalists in Irpin.

© Efrem Lukatsky/AP/dpa

Update from May 3, 1:15 p.m .:

Chancellor Olaf Scholz has promised Sweden and Finland Germany’s support for NATO accession.

"If these two countries decide that they want to be part of the NATO alliance, they can count on our support," said Scholz on Wednesday at a press conference after the cabinet meeting at Meseberg Castle.

The prime ministers of Sweden and Finland, Magdalena Andersson and Sanna Marin, attended the traffic light coalition meeting at Meseberg Castle.

They emphasized that the Russian attack on Ukraine is forcing their countries to reassess the question of NATO membership.

The attack "changed our security environment a lot," said Marin.

Russia, with which Finland shares a border that is around 1,300 meters long, has no say in the choice of alliance: "Russia has no right whatsoever to dictate to others what choice they make," said Marin.

During the press statement, Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz stands next to Sanna Marin (left), Prime Minister of the Republic of Finland, and Magdalena Andersson, Prime Minister of Sweden.

© Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Sweden's Prime Minister Andersson described Russia's attack on Ukraine as a "deep, drastic turning point".

"We have to adapt to these new conditions," she said.

Sweden will expand its defense capabilities and increase military spending to two percent of economic output as soon as possible.

Andersson announced that her government would present an analysis of the security situation on May 13, on the basis of which a public debate about joining NATO would then be held.

Germany and Ukraine war: Merz arrived in Kyiv despite warnings - plans leaked

Update from May 3, 12:10 p.m

.: According to a report by the news channel ntv, CDU leader Friedrich Merz has now arrived in Ukraine.

Apparently a visit to the Kiev suburb of Irpin is planned first, where possible war crimes by the Russian army against Ukrainian civilians are currently being investigated.

It is said that Merz would like to find out more about it. 

According to information from those around him, Merz is planning a press conference in Kiev City Hall, the official residence of Mayor Vitali Klitschko, for Tuesday evening.

The opposition leader had traveled to the war-torn country despite urgent warnings from the Federal Criminal Police Office.

Update from May 3, 11:57 a.m .:

CDU leader Friedrich Merz reported on Twitter from the train to the Ukrainian capital of Kiev.

"One night in a sleeper on the way to Kyiv," he wrote on Tuesday morning, sharing a 17-second video with the same text.

“We have an interesting journey ahead of us and so far I can only say: everything is safe, everything is good and the Ukrainian authorities are extremely cooperative.

Very pleasant people.

It's nice to be in this country.” The video shows Merz selfie-style in the compartment during the day as the train travels through a wooded area.

During his visit to Kyiv, the opposition leader wants to meet Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal and Mayor Vitali Klitschko, among others.

Talks with Parliament President Ruslan Stefantschuk and opposition politicians are also on his agenda, as the German Press Agency learned from Ukrainian government circles.

A meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyj is not initially planned.

Update from May 3, 11:32 a.m .:

The number of refugees from Ukraine registered in Germany has exceeded 400,000.

The Federal Ministry of the Interior announced this on Tuesday in the short message service Twitter, citing the Federal Police.

The number was therefore 400,632.

"The majority are women, children and the elderly," the ministry said.

Because not all people from Ukraine are registered in Germany, the actual number is likely to be significantly higher.

Traffic light is quietly advising on the Ukraine war – including Sweden and Finland: NATO news at noon?

First report:

Meseberg – After the fall elections, the SPD, Greens and FDP could not have foreseen that a war in Europe would be the dominant topic of the first cabinet meeting of the traffic light coalition.

The government will withdraw to its guest house in Meseberg north of Berlin for two days from Tuesday, May 3rd.

The coalition wants to discuss how to deal with the Ukraine war, which has put the world in a new situation in just a few weeks.

Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz with the Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin (left) and the Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson in front of Meseberg Castle.

© John MacDougall/AFP

Germany and the Ukraine war: Scholz sees security in Europe as the central topic of the closed conference

At the start of the exam, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) made a statement on Tuesday morning (May 3).

You come together for the cabinet retreat to “talk about the important issues that concern us all,” said Scholz.

Above all, it is important to talk about security issues for Europe.

The Swedish and Finnish Prime Ministers, Magdalena Andersson and Sanna Marin, are also guests as important allies.

Sweden and Finland are currently also discussing (joint) NATO membership.

Scholz wants to appear in front of the press with the two heads of government at noon.

According to Scholz, the government also wants to advise on the economic effects of the Ukraine crisis - and on the question of what the "great transformation associated with climate change means economically." Experts are invited to this.

According to the Chancellor, the aim was to continue modernizing Germany, "particularly in these difficult times".

Meseberg Castle in Brandenburg, where the Federal Cabinet meets for a two-day closed conference.

© Michael Kappeler/dpa

Germany and the Ukraine war: Prime Ministers from Sweden and Finland at a closed conference as guests

According to the federal government, another topic of the closed session is “the German economic model with regard to the challenges of the global economy”.

The cabinet has invited the directors of the Institute of German Economics and the Institute for Macroeconomics and Business Cycle Research, Michael Hüther and Sebastian Dullien, as guests.

At the end of the exam on Wednesday there will be a press conference with Scholz, Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) and Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP).