Leaders Of Three EU Countries Arrived In Kyiv In Support Of Ukraine

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki speaks to the press upon arrival at an emergency European Union (EU) summit at the European Council building about the situation in Ukraine after Russia launched its invasion of Brussels, Belgium, February 24, 2022. John Tees/Pool via REUTERS

PRAGUE/WARSAW, March 15 – The prime ministers of the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovenia arrived in Kyiv by train on Tuesday to show support for Ukraine, the first foreign leaders to visit the capital since Russia’s invasion last month.

Authorities said Russian airstrikes and shelling hit Kyiv on Tuesday, killing at least four people as invading forces tightened control and the mayor announced a 35-hour curfew starting at 8:00 pm (6:00 p.m. ET). Greenwich). More

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Czech counterpart Piotr Fiala and Slovenian Janez Jansa were to meet with Ukrainian officials. Also present was Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister Jarosław Kaczynski, the leader of the country’s ruling PiS party, who is considered the country’s main decision-maker.

“It is here, in war-torn Kyiv, that history is being made. This is where freedom fights the world of tyranny. It is here that the future of all of us hangs in the balance,” Morawiecki wrote on Twitter.

The Czech Republic and Poland, former communist members of the EU and NATO, have been among the strongest supporters of Ukraine in Europe since the Russian invasion.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal hailed what he called “the courage of true friends” and said the leaders would discuss support for Ukraine and further sanctions against Russia.

Morawiecki’s top aide Michal Dvorczyk told private broadcaster Polsat News on Tuesday evening that the three prime ministers had begun meeting with Shmygal and President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Polish state broadcaster TVP Info reported that Morawiecki and Kaczynski also went to meet with the Kiev authorities, without giving details.

Fiala said the decision to visit Kyiv came after consultations with European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The idea for the trip was agreed upon at a summit of EU leaders in Versailles in France last week, Dvorczyk said.

But an EU official said that Brussels did not renew the “official mandate”.

“This is a very correct initiative. Any initiative to restore peace in Ukraine, of course, is welcome,” the official said. “Some leaders may also wonder if this will jeopardize or improve the conditions for negotiations with the Russians. Of course, this remains to be seen. It’s a fine line.”

Russia calls its actions a “special military operation” to “denazify” Ukraine, which Kyiv and its Western allies reject as a pretext for an unjustified and illegal attack.

Reporting by Jan Lopatka in Prague and Pavel Florkiewicz and Alan Charlish in Warsaw; Edited by Louise Havens and Grant McCool

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