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Friedrich Merz, the leader of Germany’s conservative opposition and the front-runner to become the next chancellor, was in Kiev on Monday in a show of unity with Ukraine.
“If our support for Ukraine weakens, then this war will last longer,” warned the leader of the centre-right Christian Democrats after arriving by train in the Ukrainian capital.
“If our support for Ukraine is consistent, then this war will end more quickly,” said Merz, on his second visit to Kiev since the start of Russia’s all-out invasion in February 2022.
Merz said he would meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky to find out “what we can do to help this battered country to continue to defend itself against Russian aggression.”
Concerns about the extent to which Donald Trump will continue to provide military aid to Ukraine after taking office as US president on January 20 are weighing on Kiev and its European allies.
As cold weather sets in, Russian President Vladimir Putin has been aiming drones and missiles at the electricity and heating infrastructure to make life miserable for Ukraine’s citizens.
Ukraine has also been losing territory to Russia at multiple points along the roughly 1,000-kilometre front line, and after nearly three years of full-scale war Kiev’s military is stretched thin.
Zelensky is hoping that if centre-left German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is voted out of office in early elections in February, a new government in Berlin under Merz could approve the delivery of Taurus cruise missiles.
Kiev has demanded the long-range precision weapon, saying it would bolster its defences against Russia. But Scholz has been reluctant, fearing it could escalate the fighting and risk Germany becoming directly involved in the war.
Merz has said in the past he would be open to giving Ukraine the missiles.
“We want this terrible war to end as quickly as possible and peace to be restored in Europe. For this, Ukraine must be put in a position in which it can exercise its right to self-defence,” said Merz in Kiev on Monday morning, without directly mentioning Taurus missiles.
German opposition leader urges European contact group on Ukraine
With Donald Trump set to return to the White House, German opposition leader Friedrich Merz on Monday urged the creation of a European group to coordinate further military aid for Ukraine.
Merz, who is seen as the frontrunner to replace German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in upcoming early elections, arrived in Kiev on Monday morning for a visit intended to underscore Germany’s continued support.
“We must do everything we can to enable Ukraine to exercise its right to self-defence without restriction. And do everything we can to end this war as quickly as possible,” Merz said at a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
There are concerns that Trump could reduce, or even halt, US aid for Ukraine once he takes power on January 20, although Trump has not been explicit about his plans.
Merz said Ukraine’s allies in Europe must be prepared for any eventualities, and key powers like Germany, France and the United Kingdom “can only develop this strategy together.”
Zelensky also suggested that Denmark could play an important role.
Merz also again indicated that he would likely ease Scholz’s strict limits on how Ukraine uses German-supplied weapons in the war against the Russian invasion, and would be far more open to supplying Germany’s long-range Taurus cruise missiles to Kiev.
