German FM Baerbock makes solidarity visit to Odesa, affirming support for Ukraine

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Germany, Annalena Baerbock, arrived in Odesa on an unannounced visit on February 24, on the second anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation.

DW reported this.

Baerbock arrived in Odesa together with the Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba. This is her sixth trip to Ukraine since the beginning of full-scale Russian aggression. During a conversation with journalists, Kuleba emphasized that "all the decisions necessary for the victory of Ukraine will be adopted" and that Germany "will play the main role here."

"For 731 days, two years, Putin wanted to break the people of Ukraine. Ukrainians have never been more united; we, as Europeans, have never been more united," the head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry added.

His German colleague added that Germany is doing everything to support Ukraine "with the awareness that this could happen to us."

Baerbock and Kuleba visited the Port of Odesa and the Transfiguration Cathedral, which were destroyed after Russian shelling.

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During a press conference with Volodymyr Zelensky, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a new military aid package worth €1.1 billion for Ukraine. This includes 36 armored wheeled howitzers from German industrial stocks, 120,000 pieces of ammunition, two Skynex systems, and missiles for IRIS-T missile launchers.

According to Scholz, Germany has already allocated €1.7 million to assist Ukraine and has committed an additional €6 billion for the coming years. Scholz emphasized that Germany is the second-largest contributor among Ukraine's partners, with a total of €28 billion in military aid.

On February 16, President Zelensky arrived at the Federal Chancellery in Berlin for talks with Chancellor Scholz. The leaders will discuss further support for Ukraine in defense, politics, and finance.

During the visit, an agreement on security cooperation between the two countries was signed by both leaders.