Ukraine updates: Mood in Kyiv 'strong,' Habeck tells DW

German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck made a surprise visit to Ukraine on Thursday to show support as Ukraine runs short on weapons and ammunition to fight off Russia. 

Habeck held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and other Ukrainian officials there. Speaking to DW, Habeck said the mood in Kyiv was "really strong" and that everyone he talked to showed commitment to "continue to fight" for Ukraine's freedom. 

Asked if he thought Russia could be stopped, Habeck said that "Of course it can be stopped. They [Ukrainian forces] need air defense systems, more air defense systems. This is something the president asked me."

"Germany delivered another Patriot system, and we are doing that as a first move to ask others and to give an example that everyone can do a little more. If you look at the number of Patriot systems other countries have, there are countries that have quite [a few] more Patriot systems than Germany has," Habeck said. 

Regarding Ukraine's dwindling ammunition stocks, Habeck said that it might be "the most hardest time for them" but things would be better soon.

Czech Republic has bought ammunition along with Germany, Habeck said, adding that support from the US was on the horizon after being stalled for months in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives.  

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy  thanked Berlin for its continued support for his country, following German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck's visit to Kyiv earlier in the day.

"We appreciate Germany's leadership role, which helps not only us in Ukraine to protect lives, but all of Europe itself —  to preserve the very Europe that knows how to live peacefully, knows the law and knows how to take care of people," Zelenskyy said in his daily video address on Thursday. 

Habeck arrived in Ukraine on Thursday for a surprise visit. Zelenskyy said they discussed the situation on the front lines and the particular need for air defense systems.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Thursday followed a promise to send another Patriot missile battery to Ukraine by urging NATO alliance partners to do the same.

"We hope that six more will be found in the NATO context, and I have also taken the opportunity here to advocate for this in many discussions," he said at an EU summit in Brussels.

Ukraine has been desperately pleading with NATO member states to continue supplying vital weaponry, especially air defense systems like the US-made Patriot system, as it seeks to fend off an at times overwhelming amount of incoming Russian missiles and drones — many of which target key infrastructure facilities.   

Polish authorities arrested a man suspected of planning an assassination attempt on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on behalf of Russian intelligence services.

The man is the third suspected Russian spy taken into custody recently after German police arrested a pair of men in the southern state of Bavaria.

The Polish national, identified as Pawel K., is suspected of supplying airport security information to Russian military intelligence and "helping the Russian special forces to plan a possible assassination attempt" against Zelensky, according to a statement from Polish prosecutors.

The man was arrested on Wednesday. If convicted, he could face up to eight years in prison, according to the prosecutors' statement.

The man was allegedly also attempting to pass on information about Rzeszow-Jasionka airport in southeastern Poland, near the Ukraine border.

The airport, which is under the control of the US military, is a gateway for international military and humanitarian supplies for Ukraine. 

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Thursday derided speculation about possible US military aid to Ukraine saying, "It won't in any way influence the development of the situation on the front."

"All experts now assert that the situation on the front is very unfavorable for the Ukrainian side," Peskov added, "therefore it will not be able to change anything."

Ukraine has repeatedly said military aid stalled in the Republican-controlled US House of Representatives is imperative to its survival in the face of a more than two-year Russian onslaught.

For months, House Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to allow a vote on President Joe Biden's $61 billion (€57.2 billion) aid package for fear of losing his job after hard-right party colleagues threatened to throw him out if he did.

Nevertheless, Johnson has now suggested the bill could finally come to a vote on Saturday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the delay has already cost Kyiv precious lives and territory. 

Russia dismissed Washington's potential aid as part of a "colonial" policy that only serves to enrich the United States.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine had an "urgent, critical need for more air defense," as G7 foreign ministers met on Capri.

Stoltenberg said the alliance was working to get more air defense systems to Kyiv.

"We have compiled data about the different air defense systems we have in NATO and focused on the Patriot systems. And we are working with Allies to ensure that they redeploy some of their systems to Ukraine," he told reporters.

Earlier this week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the Trypilska thermal power plant — one of the largest suppliers of electricity in the Kyiv region — was destroyed by Russian missiles on April 11 because Ukrainian forces ran out of missiles to defend it.  

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba have both stressed the need for the US Congress to pass a new military aid package for Kyiv as it fights against a Russian invasion.

"At this moment, it is urgent that all of the friends and supporters of Ukraine maximize their efforts to provide ... Ukraine with what it needs to continue to effectively defend itself against the Russian aggression," Blinken said, speaking on the sidelines of the G7 foreign ministers' meeting on the Mediterranean island of Capri.

Blinken said it was in the US' own interests to ensure Ukraine could ward off the Russian assault. 

"If (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is allowed to proceed with impunity, we know he won't stop at Ukraine," Blinken said. 

Kuleba "emphasized the urgent need for the U.S. Congress to pass the supplemental aid package for Ukraine."

He said the US aid package, which has long been blocked by Republicans in Congress, "will literally, without exaggeration, help save Ukrainians from Russian missile slaughter." 

Citing the Russian missile strike on Ukraine's historic city of Chernihiv on Wednesday, which killed at least 18 people, Kuleba said the tragedy was "that these kind of attacks happen almost every day in Ukraine." 

The G7 meeting is due to discuss support for Ukraine at a session later on Thursday.

The US House of Representatives is expected to vote on Saturday on new military aid, including some $61 billion (€57 billion) in support for Ukraine.

Ukraine on Thursday said its forces attacked a military airfield in Russian-occupied Crimea, destroying an array of equipment.

Ukraine’s military intelligence agency said that four S-400 surface-to-air missile launchers, three radar stations and an air-defense control point were "destroyed or critically damaged," the agency said on social media platforms.

It added that the number of aircraft damaged or destroyed as a result of the attack was being clarified.

Russian forces have recently stepped up missile attacks on Ukraine from Crimea which Moscow seized and has occupied since 2014.

The Kremlin on Thursday said that any new US aid package for Ukraine wouldn’t change the situation militarily.

"It won't in any way influence the development of the situation on the front ... which is very unfavorable for the Ukrainian side," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden said he strongly supported a proposal from Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson to provide aid to Ukraine with a new aid package worth $61 billion (€57 billion).

The House could vote on the package — which has been stalling for months amid political infighting — as soon as Saturday.

Ukraine has been pushing for the release of the aid package as it faces shortages of equipment to tackle Russia’s continued and increasing strikes and advances.

If the bill passes, the White House says a new long-range ATACMS missile system could be sent to Ukraine.

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Thursday called on member states to send their anti-missile systems to Ukraine to help bolster defensive capabilities as Russia continues bombardments.

"We have Patriots, we have anti-missile systems. We have to take them (out) from our barracks where they are just in case and send them to Ukraine where the war is raging," Borrell told reporters at a meeting of the Group of Seven (G7) foreign ministers in the island of Capri.

The EU’s top diplomat warned: "Otherwise the electricity system of Ukraine will be destroyed. And no country can fight without having electricity at home, in the factories, online, for everything."

Earlier this week Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Trypilska thermal power plant — one of the largest suppliers of electricity in the Kyiv region — was destroyed by Russian missiles on April 11.

Zelenskyy said the plant's destruction was due to Ukraine’s lack of air defense missiles.

Zelenskyy has previously warned that Ukraine has already had to make tough decisions about what to protect and said his country could run out of defensive missiles altogether if Russian attacks continued.

Ukraine has received several air defense systems during the first two years of war, including the US-made Patriot system to help defend against Russian drone and cruise missile attacks.

Kyiv says it needs 25 Patriot units in total to cover the country —  and at least seven urgently.

Over the weekend, Germany announced it would send an additional Patriot air defense system to Ukraine.

Prosecutors in Germany on Thursday said that two German-Russian nationals have been arrested on suspicion of espionage.

The two are accused, among other things, of acting as agents for sabotage purposes and of preparing explosives, the German Federal Prosecutor's Office announced in Karlsruhe.

One of the men is accused of agreeing to carry out attacks on potential targets including US military facilities in Germany, with the aim of sabotaging aid for Ukraine.

The two were arrested in the Bavarian city of Bayreuth on Wednesday and have been linked to the separatist pro-Russia Donetsk People's Republic, prosecutors said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz called on EU leaders on Wednesday to send more Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine after Kyiv said it is running out of weaponry to withstand Russian attacks.

Scholz emphasized the urgency of immediate action at an EU leaders' summit in Brussels, while reiterating Germany's commitment to support Kyiv's defense against intensified Russian attacks.

"Now it is about doing it quickly and not at some point in the future," the German leader said.

Germany announced on Saturday its decision to supply a Patriot air defense system following Ukraine's appeals for aid to counter Russian bombardments.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, addressing EU leaders via video link, highlighted a recent attack in Chernigiv that killed 17 people. 

Amid ongoing Russian strikes, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also urged member states to prioritize aid to Ukraine.

"If allies face a choice between meeting NATO capability targets and providing more aid to Ukraine, my message is clear: Send more to Ukraine," Stoltenberg said.

The European Union is organizing the "Ukraine's Future Summit 2024" in Brussels on Thursday, marking another step in Ukraine's economic and political integration with Europe.

The summit will bring together corporate leaders to explore opportunities for EU-based companies to invest in Ukraine.

Discussions will focus on key sectors of the Ukrainian economy, with an emphasis on promoting sustainable development and strengthening economic ties between the EU and Ukraine.

Those attending include Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Economy Oleksii Sobolev, European Commission's Gert Jan Koopman and Volker Oel from the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

This event follows the EU's decision in December last year to begin membership talks with Ukraine, a move Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as "a victory for Ukraine, a victory for all of Europe."

ss/rm (Reuters, AFP, AP, dpa)