To demonstrate their solidarity, many leading politicians have traveled to the attacked Ukraine. The German Chancellor Scholz has so far refrained from this gesture. With an upcoming decision on Ukraine’s EU membership application, the occasion might now have come.
According to a media report, Chancellor Olaf Scholz plans to travel to Kyiv later this month, following a number of other heads of state and government. The SPD politician is planning the visit before the summit of the G7 countries at the end of June with French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, reported “Bild am Sonntag” on Saturday, citing French and Ukrainian government circles. A spokesman for the federal government did not want to comment on the report on Saturday evening. There was also no confirmation from Rome and Paris.
Numerous leading international politicians have traveled to Ukraine since the beginning of the war to show solidarity with the country under Russian attack. Several German federal ministers have also been there: following Annalena Baerbock (Aussen, Greens) and Svenja Schulze (Development, SPD), Karl Lauterbach (Health, SPD) and Cem Özdemir (Agriculture, Greens). Scholz recently said he would only travel to Ukraine if there were specific things to discuss.
This moment might now have come: important decisions on Ukraine’s application for membership are pending at EU level. The country hopes to be declared a candidate country at the EU summit on June 23-24. The EU Commission intends to make its recommendation on this in the coming days. Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) therefore traveled to Kyiv at the weekend – for the second time following the beginning of the war.
Michael Kappeler/dpa
