Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida made a surprise visit to Ukraine and will have a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy this Tuesday (21), the Foreign Ministry said.
Kishida “will convey directly to President Zelensky respect for the courage and perseverance of the Ukrainian people who rose up under his leadership to defend their homeland, as well as solidarity and strong support for Ukraine on the part of Japan and the G7 chaired by Japan ,” said a statement released by Japanese diplomacy.
Related
The Japanese head of government has been invited to Ukraine to host this year’s G7 summit.
Kishida is the only G7 leader yet to travel to Ukraine after US President Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Kyiv in February and met with Zelenskyy.
Channel NHK reported that its journalists in Poland filmed a vehicle carrying the prime minister in the city of Przemysl, from where other international leaders boarded a train bound for Ukraine.
The visit comes as Chinese President Xi Jinping is in Moscow and is meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to address the conflict in Ukraine.
Japan announced a $5.5 billion aid offer to Ukraine in February after providing humanitarian and emergency relief.
The Japanese government has not offered any military support because the country’s pacifist constitution limits the use of its armed forces to defense missions.
nf/sah/cwl/mas/atm/fp
© Agence FrancePresse