Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy plans to visit Germany in May. On this subject writing Bild, citing sources in the German government.
The Ukrainian leader could come to Aachen, where he is expected to receive the Charlemagne Prize. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is also due to deliver a speech at the ceremony.
The Charlemagne Prize is awarded for “contribution to the unification of Europe”. In 2023, the awards committee decided award the prize to Volodymyr Zelenskyy, justifying this by the fact that under his leadership, Ukrainians are defending not only their own country, “but also Europe and European values”.
The awards ceremony was originally scheduled to take place on May 18, but as Scholz will be attending the G7 summit, which will be held in Hiroshima, Japan, from May 19-21, it has been decided to postpone the event “for the weekend”, writes the newspaper.
If the trip takes place, it will be Zelenskyy’s first visit to Germany since the start of the military conflict.
As Bild notes, a personal meeting between Zelenskyy and Scholz could “open a new chapter of friendship” between the countries against the background of the fact that “difficult” relations have developed between Kiev and Berlin (in particular, Zelenskyy previously had criticized Germany for an indecisive position on the supply of Leopard 2 tanks).
At the same time, it is possible that the Ukrainian leader will speak at the ceremony via video link, as he will have to be in Ukraine during the expected counteroffensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Bild notes.
In December 2022, Zelenskyy made his first international visit since the outbreak of hostilities – then he traveled to the United States, where he met with US President Joe Biden. In February, the Ukrainian leader came to France and Belgium, and in early April to Poland.
