German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in Kiev today (Sunday), accompanied by CEOs of German defense companies, in a gesture of support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities escalate.
German government officials said that Meretz will announce a package of measures that includes providing one billion euros in military aid and 350 million euros for reforms in the energy sector. The visit is also expected to finalize an agreement for the joint production of different types of drones.
Mertz said: “I traveled to Kiev today because Ukraine needs all our support in the coming weeks,” noting that Russian forces are bombing towns, residential buildings, and heating plants. He added: “If Russia is not stopped, its war machine will turn against us sooner or later,” according to Reuters.
He continued: “I will tell President Zelensky today: You can continue to count on our help.”
The German Chancellor is accompanied by the Minister of Economy, Katrina Reiche, and an economic delegation that includes executives from Siemens Energy, Hensult, Diehl Defense, Quantum Systems, and other companies.
Merz is also expected to urge the Ukrainian government to make progress on reforms requested by EU partners, including the fight against corruption.
Zelensky said on Wednesday, after a phone call with Meretz, that Ukraine would soon finalize the agreement with Germany to produce drones, missiles and related software.
It is expected that much of the focus will be on the rapid production of anti-jet drones, which Quantum, a German defense technology company, has successfully tested. Since the summer, Russia has been using dozens of high-speed attack drones daily to target civilian and military infrastructure.
In April, Quantum and the Ukrainian manufacturer WYY Drones announced the establishment of Quantum WIY Industries, a joint venture to produce the Strela interceptor drone and related air defense technologies.
The agreement also includes the joint development and production of weapons with a range of more than 1,000 kilometers that Ukraine can use to launch attacks deep into Russia.
Government officials said increased cooperation would allow money and technology to flow into the Federal Republic, as weapons could be produced and defenses strengthened against drones targeting critical infrastructure.
Merz said on Thursday that Germany would not be intimidated by the increase in the number of hybrid attacks launched by Russia on European countries.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said, in a statement yesterday (Sat), that Moscow will continue to systematically strike targets in Ukraine, while saying that these are retaliatory strikes for Ukrainian attacks on Russia in the past few months. It warned foreign nationals and employees of diplomatic missions against staying in or traveling to Ukraine.
Zelensky told Reuters on Saturday that his country's armed forces would intensify their attacks on oil refineries in Russia in response to Moscow's "new doctrine" of escalating attacks on civilian infrastructure, which he said aims to force residents of Kiev and other cities to flee.
The Paris police chief said on Saturday that the student protest movement that had spread across France was now "out of control" and urged protesters to return to peaceful methods, warning that the authorities would respond firmly to acts of violence and vandalism.
Riot police clashed with high school students across France on Friday, and unions called on teachers to strike as President Emmanuel Macron's government struggles to contain increasingly violent protests over classroom conditions and funding.
Since Monday, authorities have arrested about five thousand people, most of them teenagers, across the country and dozens have been injured.
National Police spokeswoman Agat Foucault told RTL radio on Saturday that more than 600 police officers were also injured.
Teachers and citizens were attacked, while property damage was estimated at tens of millions of euros.
Paris Police Chief Patrice Faure said in a message published on the “X” platform before the new protests scheduled to start next Tuesday that those who launched this movement no longer control it, and called on students to abandon school closures, stop the riots, and adopt peaceful forms of protest.
“It is time to return to peaceful forms of action,” Fore wrote, noting that parents also bear responsibility for distancing their children from what he described as the influence of “professional hooligans” and their supporters.
Student unions called for a national day of protests to be held on Tuesday. Security officials fear that the organized protests in central Paris in particular will lead to more violence, amid fears that anarchist groups affiliated with the far-left movement will seize control of the movement.
Students erecting barricades in front of secondary schools have expressed anger at overcrowded classrooms, a persistent teacher shortage, and the deteriorating condition of buildings, which they blame on a lack of investment that has persisted for years.
Heavy rains and thunderstorms caused floods and severe damage in Crete, which required the evacuation of a number of tourists from this famous Greek island, according to what the authorities announced on Saturday.
“We had to evacuate some tourists, and a woman was taken to hospital as a precaution,” said Emmanuel Fracoulis, mayor of Ierapetra, which is located on the southeastern coast of Crete and was hit by heavy rains on Friday and Saturday.
He added, “We are facing serious problems, as huge amounts of water have accumulated. The roads were cut off and filled with debris.”
In Chania, which attracts large numbers of tourists, the old Venetian port was exposed to strong waves, which led to damage and disrupted the activity of restaurants and tourist facilities.
Civil protection services called on residents of a number of areas, including Mylopotamos, a mountainous rural area near Rethymno (northwest of the island), to limit their movements and seek refuge in higher areas.
The Greek Radio and Television Corporation reported that 23 people were trapped inside their cars on the road between Ierapetra and Sitia, on the northeastern coast.
The Greek Meteorological Authority announced the activation of the “red alert” on the island of Crete, which is the highest level of alert, with heavy rains expected to continue and thunderstorms recorded in some areas.
