War in Ukraine, Day 113 | Macron, Scholz and Draghi on an unprecedented visit to Kyiv

(Kyiv) Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz and Mario Draghi began an unprecedented “support” visit to Kyiv on Thursday, as the European Union is set to decide next week whether to grant Ukraine official candidate status. European Union.

Arrived at Kyiv station after nearly ten hours by train from south-eastern Poland, the French president, who holds the rotating presidency of the European Union until June 30, said that the leaders had come to address ” a message of European unity” and “support” for Kyiv “both for the present and for the future”.

By then visiting Irpin, one of the suburbs of Kyiv devastated at the start of the war by the failed Russian offensive on the capital, the French president defended himself from any “ambiguity” in his support for Kyiv, he who was much criticized for asserting that Russia should not be “humiliated”.

“Ukraine must be able to resist and win” against the Russian army, he declared. “France has been alongside Ukraine since day one” […] we stand with the Ukrainians unambiguously,” he asserted.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, criticized for the lack of German arms deliveries to Ukraine, has not made a formal statement for the moment. He indicated that the visit was aimed “to show our solidarity” and to “ensure that the aid we are organizing, financial, humanitarian, but also when it comes to weapons, will continue. […] as long as it takes for the struggle for Ukrainian independence,” in an interview with the daily Bild published on his arrival in Kyiv.

Like other European leaders who have come to Kyiv before them, the leaders strolled the streets of Irpin, stopping in front of buildings destroyed by fighting or a charred car, and viewing video of Irpin in the thick of the fighting.

At the end of this visit, the French president praised the “heroism” of the Ukrainians.

It was here, among other places, that the Ukrainians stopped the Russian army which was descending on Kyiv. So you have to imagine the heroism of the army, but also of the Ukrainian population, “said Mr. Macron, referring to” the stigmata of barbarism “and the ongoing investigations into war crimes whose Ukrainians accuse Russian forces.

Hundreds of civilians were killed in the towns of Irpin, Boutcha and Borodianka, during the Russian occupation of this region in March. International investigations are underway to determine the culprits of these war crimes of which the Ukrainians accuse the Russian forces.

“Clear political signals”

The four leaders were then due to return to central Kyiv for talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, before a joint press conference in the afternoon.

The Ukrainian capital has come back to life since the Russian withdrawal from the region, but is still occasionally hit by Russian fire. Warning sirens sound there frequently, as was the case shortly after the arrival of European leaders.

The question of Ukraine’s accession to the EU should be at the heart of the discussions. Mr. Zelensky insists that his country, by defending “the values” of Europe in the face of Russian aggression, has won the right to join the European bloc, which the EU refused to consider before the start of the invasion Russian.

The Twenty-Seven must decide, during a summit on June 23-24, whether they will initially grant Ukraine the official status of candidate for membership, the start of a negotiation process which may last years. The European Commission is due to make its recommendation known on Friday.

On Wednesday, from Romania, the French president had stressed the need to send “clear political signals” to Ukrainians in an “unprecedented geopolitical situation”.

Among the 27, the countries of Eastern Europe support this candidacy, but others such as Denmark or the Netherlands have expressed reservations. Any decision requires unanimity.

Ukraine could obtain candidate status with conditions or a date for the opening of negotiations, according to some experts.

France says it is “open” to this candidacy, but proposes the creation of a European political community which would make it possible to anchor Ukraine more quickly in Europe, by associating it with concrete projects of defence, energy or infrastructure, without waiting for membership. A proposal freshly welcomed in Kyiv, which fears that it will postpone EU membership indefinitely.

The Ukrainian president is also expected to reiterate his request for the acceleration of heavy weapons deliveries.

“Ukraine must obtain everything necessary to achieve victory”, he insisted on Wednesday before Czech deputies.

Mr. Macron assured that France had contributed to supplying “defensive and then offensive” military equipment, in particular with the supply of Caesar self-propelled guns, already used on the Donbass front.

“Tipping point”

The visit comes as Ukrainian forces struggle in Donbass, a region in eastern Ukraine partially controlled by pro-Russian separatists since 2014 and which Moscow has set itself the goal of full control.

The United States on Wednesday announced another $1 billion tranche of military aid to Ukraine, including additional artillery and shells.

“I want to express my gratitude for this support, it is especially important for our defense in the Donbass,” Mr. Zelensky reacted in his daily video message.

Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin on Wednesday called on his allies to “step up” arms deliveries to the Ukrainians.

“Ukraine is facing a pivotal moment on the battlefield,” he told a meeting in Brussels of the countries of the “contact group” created by the United States to militarily assist Ukraine. . “We must therefore intensify our joint commitment” and “redouble our efforts so that she can defend herself”, he added.

The fighting has been concentrated for several weeks on Sievierodonetsk and Lyssytchansk, two key neighboring towns for the control of Donbass, subjected to constant bombardments and whose almost all infrastructure – electricity, water, communications – no longer works.

“It’s getting harder every day, the Russians are bringing more and more weapons into the city and trying to attack from multiple directions,” Sievierodonetsk mayor Oleksandr Striouk said on Thursday.

The Ukrainian forces are notably entrenched in the Azot chemical plant, emblematic of this city with some 100,000 inhabitants before the war, with more than 500 civilians inside, according to the mayor of Sievierodonetsk Oleksandre Striouk.

Moscow on Tuesday proposed a “humanitarian corridor” that would evacuate these civilians to Russian-controlled territory, before accusing Kyiv on Wednesday of having “failed” the operation.

In total, some 10,000 civilians are still present in Sievierodonetsk, Serguii Gaïdaï, the governor of the Luhansk region, said Thursday.

“For almost four months, they (the Russians) have dreamed of controlling Sievierodonetsk where, out of 100,000 inhabitants, about 10,000 are still there, not counting the victims,” ​​he said on Telegram messaging.

According to him, “the Russian army loses hundreds of fighters, but finds reserves and continues to destroy Sievierodonetsk”. But “our soldiers are holding the defense,” he said.