German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock made a surprise visit to kyiv on Monday, where she promised more support for Ukraine and praised the country’s progress on the path to joining the European Union.
“With enormous courage and determination, Ukraine also defends the freedom of all of us,” said Baerbock in a statement released by the German Foreign Ministry, cited by the AFP agency.
“We will not slow down our efforts to support Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression: economic, military and humanitarian,” he assured.
This was Baerbock’s fourth visit to Ukraine since the start of the war in February 2022. Ukraine’s candidacy for membership in the European Union is expected to be one of the topics of discussion on this trip by the German Foreign Minister. .
Ukraine received European Union candidate status a year ago and hopes to begin formal negotiations later this year. Baerbock considered that Ukraine has already made “good progress” in some areas, including judicial reforms, but still has “some way to go” in the fight against corruption. The minister reaffirmed Germany’s “absolute support for Ukraine on its path towards the European Union.”
“And we, as the EU, must now work quickly to ensure that we are in the right position to have more seats at the table,” he added.
In the same vein, Baerbock also expressed his dismay over the kidnapping of Ukrainian children in Russia. “We support organizations, Ukrainian authorities and NGOs working to return abducted children to their homes,” she stressed.
“Nothing justifies that this war is fought at the expense of the most innocent children. The first step towards peace is for Putin to allow these children to return to their homes,” he appealed.
Source: TSF
