China News Network, May 5 According to foreign media reports, on the evening of the 15th local time, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky unexpectedly visited Paris and held talks with French President Macron. As Ukraine prepares to launch a counteroffensive, his multinational trip to Europe garnered new promises of military support.
According to Agence France-Presse, on the 14th local time, France sent a plane to Germany to pick up Zelensky. Zelensky went to the Elysee Palace immediately after the plane landed at the Vilacouble military base, west of Paris, where he was greeted by Macron.
On May 2023, 5, local time, French President Emmanuel Macron (right) welcomed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
"With each visit, Ukraine's defensive and offensive capabilities are enhanced. [Ukraine] is getting closer to Europe and putting more pressure on Russia. After Zelensky arrived in Paris, he wrote on social media Twitter.
This is Zelensky's second visit to the Elysee Palace since February 2022, the last one on February 2, 2023. Zelensky did not announce his trip to France in advance, and was only disclosed by the media a few hours before he arrived at his destination.
Zelensky said he and Macron "discuss the most important issues in bilateral relations." The French president's office said they discussed Ukraine's military and humanitarian needs, as well as "longer-term prospects for restoring peace in Europe," and Macron "reiterated France's and Europe's firm support for Ukraine."
According to reports, on the 15th local time, France announced that it will provide Ukraine with a series of new weapons and equipment, including air defense systems, light tanks, howitzers and other weapons and fuel. In a joint statement from both sides, France said it intends to train several Ukrainian battalions in the coming weeks and equip them with dozens of armored vehicles and AMX-10RC light tanks.
Earlier, Zelensky visited Italy and Germany one after another, and held talks with Italian Prime Minister Meloni, German Chancellor Scholz and other dignitaries. The outside world is concerned about whether Zelensky's visit to many European countries can win more military assistance for Ukraine.
Russia has previously sent a note to NATO countries on the issue of supplying arms to Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that any material containing weapons to aid Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russia.
The Russian Foreign Ministry noted that NATO countries are "playing with fire" by supplying weapons to Ukraine. Russian Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov pointed out that the delivery of weapons by the West to Ukraine will not help the success of Russian-Ukrainian negotiations and will have a negative effect.