German chancellor Olaf Scholz arrives in Kyiv for surprise visit | Ukraine

The German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has arrived in Kyiv for an unannounced visit that marks his first trip to Ukraine since the early months of full-scale war in the summer of 2022.

Scholz arrived at Kyiv’s central station early on Monday morning, smiling and clutching a large metal briefcase as he disembarked the train. Later in the day, he is due to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and announce a package of military aid to Ukraine worth €650m (£540m), to be delivered in December.

“Germany will remain Ukraine’s strongest supporter in Europe,” Scholz wrote on X.

The visit appeared designed to reassure Ukraine of German support, after Scholz faced criticism for a recent phone call he initiated with Vladimir Putin, and with much of Europe braced for the uncertainty of a Donald Trump presidency and what it may mean for the war in Ukraine.

Scholz also has one eye on his domestic political situation, where he is hoping for re-election in a February vote called after his coalition government collapsed last month. He has been criticised both by politicians who want Germany to stop sending weapons to Ukraine, and by those who want him to do more, including sending long-range Taurus missiles to Kyiv.

Scholz called Putin last month, a conversation the German chancellor said was aimed at informing the Russian president that western support for Ukraine would not falter, and to sound out whether there was any softening of Moscow’s conditions for negotiations. It was the first time the leader of a major western country had called Putin since the end of 2022.

“Mr Putin, do not expect us to reduce our support. You have to find a way out of this war. You must stop your attacks and withdraw your troops,” said Scholz after the call, summarising his message.

The call was roundly criticised, including by Zelenskyy, who said at the time that Scholz could open a “Pandora’s box” by speaking to Putin. “Now there may be other conversations, other calls. Just a lot of words … And this is exactly what Putin has long wanted: it is crucial for him to weaken his isolation, Russia’s isolation,” Zelenskyy said.

Trump has promised to make a swift peace in Ukraine a diplomatic priority when he takes office, previously saying he could solve the conflict “in 24 hours”, but has given few details of how he would do so. He recently appointed the retired army general Keith Kellogg as his Ukraine and Russia envoy.

According to a Kremlin readout of last month’s conversation between Putin and Scholz, the Russian president demanded that any potential agreement on Ukraine should be based on the “new territorial realities and address the root causes of the conflict”. Putin has previously said he wants four territories claimed by Russia in 2022, as well as Crimea, and a guarantee that Ukraine would not join Nato.

Zelenskyy said on Sunday he was ready to discuss freezing the conflict along current lines as long as Ukraine received an invitation to Nato or equivalent security guarantees.