German Opposition Leader Friedrich Merz To Visit Kiev On Monday - Reports

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 01st May, 2022) Leader of the German opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) party Friedrich Merz is expected to visit the Ukrainian capital on Monday, May 2, the Bild newspaper reports citing sources.

Merz will thus become one of the first German politicians to visit Ukraine, the Bild said on Saturday, recalling that Bundestag members Anton Hofreiter and Michael Roth both visited Ukraine in mid-April.

According to Bild, there are currently no plans for any potential visits of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Kiev.

The Bundestag voted overwhelmingly on Thursday for a motion initiated by the ruling three-party coalition that called for direct and indirect supplies of tanks and other military hardware to Ukraine.

Russia launched its special military operation in Ukraine on February 24, after the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR) appealed for help in defending themselves against Ukrainian provocations.

Russia said that the aim of its special operation is to demilitarize and "denazify" Ukraine. According to Russian President Vladimir Putin, the goal is to protect the people of Donbas, "who have been subjected to abuse, genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years."

In response to Russia's operation, Western countries have rolled out a comprehensive sanctions campaign against Moscow and have been supplying weapons to Ukraine.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Wednesday that supplying Ukraine with heavy weapons does not make the West part of the conflict between Kiev and Moscow.