German Defense Minister Pistorius arrives in Kyiv

During his visit to Kyiv, Pistorius visited the memorial on Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti), according to Espreso correspondent Kateryna Halko.

There, the German Defense Minister laid flowers to honor the fallen Ukrainian defenders. In his speech, Pistorius emphasized that while many people talk about the war, it is important to understand that this is not an abstract issue—it is real aggression imposed on Ukraine, which only wanted to live in peace. Young Ukrainian men and women are dying, defending freedom, peace, and their homeland.

Pistorius was struck by the memorial, which he had seen before—back then, it was only a few meters in size, but now it is a sea of yellow flowers and photographs of the fallen. According to him, this should inspire continued support for Ukraine so that these sacrifices are not in vain.

He also expressed skepticism about ideas of “peace talks” with Russia, stressing that before talking about peace, one must see what is happening on the ground. In his words, calls for concessions to Russia seem especially absurd here, against the backdrop of real war and suffering. 

Pistorius’s visit to Ukraine was previously reported by Spiegel.

It was noted that the German Defense Minister wants to familiarize himself with the situation in Ukraine and discuss further military assistance with government representatives.

“We are doing everything possible to support Ukraine so that it can defend itself and reach a situation where Russia is ready for serious negotiations,” Pistorius said before the trip. 

• Earlier, Boris Pistorius reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces may soon receive the first long-range weapons produced in Ukraine with financial support from Berlin.