Kyiv came under renewed Russian attack during German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s visit to the Ukrainian capital, where he arrived amid air-raid alerts and damage. Sirens sounded even as senior officials were present, while Ukrainian authorities said several bridges over the Dnipro River had been hit over four days. Some attacks took place in daylight while vehicles were crossing, disrupting links between the city’s two banks.
Merz and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the site of a drone strike on the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine last week. Zelenskyy’s office said an air-raid alarm sounded and Merz was hurried away. The Kremlin has at times reduced or paused attacks during visits by foreign leaders, but this trip unfolded amid a renewed escalation.
Germany announced $1.1 billion in military aid for Ukraine. Before the visit, Germany’s foreign intelligence chief warned that the country risked being drawn into a “violent conflict with Russia” and said Moscow was intensifying its “shadow war.” Germany has taken in more than one million Ukrainian refugees.
Moscow said its large-scale attacks were a response to Ukrainian threats against Russian oil refineries. Kyiv says it has disabled more than half of Russia’s refining capacity since the summer, contributing to a fuel crisis. Russia also says the bridges are used to move troops and cargo. The Russian Foreign Ministry urged foreign nationals and diplomats to leave Kyiv. EU Ambassador to Ukraine Katarina Mathernova replied: “We are staying.”