The foreign minister is the highest-ranking representative of the French government in Kyiv to date. During her visit, Colonna promises further military aid. She also defended President Macron's phone calls with Kremlin boss Putin.
France's new foreign minister Catherine Colonna has pledged further military aid to Ukraine in the fight against the invading Russian troops. Paris will "further step up arms deliveries," she said in Kyiv at a meeting with her Ukrainian colleague Dmytro Kuleba. The new weapons should therefore arrive in the coming weeks. France recently delivered six Ceasar self-propelled howitzers.
With her first visit to Kyiv, Colonna wanted to express "France's solidarity with the Ukrainian people," according to her ministry. In addition to Kuleba, she also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The focus of their discussion was the blockade of the Ukrainian ports imposed by Moscow and its impact on global food security.
Colonna is France's top government official to visit Ukraine since Russia's war of aggression began on February 24. At the press conference, she defended President Emmanuel Macron against criticism for his frequent phone calls with Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin. Colonna said there seemed to be no prospect of negotiations for a diplomatic solution at the moment. But "the day of dialogue" between the two Presidents Putin and Zelenskyy will have to come. Should Ukraine then wish it, "we stand by their side to make this possible".
Kuleba, meanwhile, called on the French government to support Ukraine's desire to quickly gain EU candidate status, even to skeptical EU member states.
Colonna also visited the Kiev suburb of Bucha, where the bodies of civilians had been discovered after Russian troops withdrew. France stands by "the victims of the alleged Russian atrocities," said the new foreign minister.
