Finance Minister Christian Lindner arrived in Kiev in the middle of the heated debate about cruise missiles and cluster munitions. It is his first visit to Ukraine since the Russian invasion.
Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner arrived in Kiev on Monday morning for political talks. The FDP leader is in Ukraine for the first time since the Russian war of aggression began. Lindner arrived in Kiev by train. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and several ministers were in the Ukrainian capital before him.
Ukraine has been defending itself against a Russian invasion since February 24, 2022. Germany supports the attacked country with arms deliveries. There is currently a debate about a possible delivery of cruise missiles of the “Taurus” type. Scholz had been reluctant to comment on this on ZDF on Sunday. As in the past, the federal government will always check every single decision very carefully, he said.
Germany also supports Ukraine financially. Since 2022, Germany has provided the country with direct financial aid of around 1.5 billion, according to the Ministry of Finance. In addition, Germany and other creditors announced in July 2022 that they would delay Ukraine’s debt repayments.
Debt moratorium had been extended
A debt moratorium for Ukraine was extended to 2027 in March of this year. The deferred payment is intended to give Ukraine additional liquidity leeway and maintain its state functions, the Ministry of Finance said. Ukraine had also received financial injections from the International Monetary Fund.
On the anniversary of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine on February 24, Lindner said: “Politically, militarily and financially, we will remain with Ukraine until it wins this war.” Germany has promised Ukraine support, including for the reconstruction of destroyed infrastructure.
According to Kiev, its Western allies have provided financial, military and humanitarian aid worth more than 170 billion euros since the beginning of the war. More than half of Ukraine’s budget depends on foreign funding.
