In an emotional speech to Germany's parliament on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky drew parallels between the violent occupation of his country by Russian troops with Germany's painful Cold War history of division.
Zelensky cited those divisions to underscore the need for Ukraine and the country's European supporters to continue fighting against the ongoing Russian invasion.
"Divided Europe was never peaceful. And a divided Germany was never happy," Zelensky told lawmakers in the Bundestag.
"And that's why you can understand us, the Ukrainians. You can understand why we are fighting so hard against Russia's attempts to divide us and to divide Ukraine. Why we are doing everything, simply everything, not to allow a wall between the parts of our country. No country should be condemned to have barbed wire tearing its body apart for decades."
Zelensky made renewed appeals for support, and argued that Russian forces must not be allowed to continue their march through Ukraine and toward the rest of Europe.
"It is in our common interest that [Russian President Vladimir] Putin personally lose this war," Zelensky said in a speech that was repeatedly interrupted by applause. "And that is precisely why we must all work together to force Russia to change. And that is possible, because there are no walls that will not fall."
Zelensky, dressed in a military style jumper, spoke from a lectern that stood just behind three large flower arrangements in the Ukrainian colours blue and yellow. At the end of his speech, he was hailed with a standing ovation that lasted several minutes.
'Give diplomacy a chance'
Zelensky also addressed an upcoming Ukraine peace conference in Switzerland in his remarks on Tuesday, saying that he hoped there would be progress toward an eventual deal to end the conflict.
"We want to give diplomacy a chance and have brought together around 100 countries," Zelensky said. "Ukraine has never relied solely on the strength of its weapons."
During another speech earlier on Tuesday to a Ukrainian reconstruction conference being hosted in Berlin, however, Zelensky argued that the only way to get Putin to negotiate for peace is to deny him the chance to make gains by force.
Russia was not invited to participate in the gathering in Switzerland and the Kremlin has dismissed the talks as meaningless.
Earlier on Tuesday, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he hoped the conference could lay groundwork for eventual talks that might include Russia.
"These are not yet negotiations about an end to the war, because for that Putin would have to show that he is prepared to end his brutal campaign and withdraw troops," Scholz said at a joint press conference with Zelensky.
"But perhaps a way can be found to start a process during which Russia will one day also take a seat at the table," Scholz added.
The German chancellor stressed that only Ukraine will decide when to engage with Russia and would not be forced into huge concessions by its supporters. Germany will remain firmly on the side of the Ukrainians, he said.
Air defence a key issue
The Ukrainian president was greeted with prolonged applause from members of Germany's parliament, the Bundestag. He entered the packed plenary chamber alongside German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Scholz and ministers from his coalition government also attended the speech.
The Ukrainian president thanked Germany for supporting his country, particularly acknowledging Germany's supply of Patriot air-defence systems, which he credited with saving "thousands" of lives.
Earlier, both Zelensky and Scholz had made appeals for further supplies of air-defence systems to Ukraine to fend off constant Russian airstrikes. Zelensky acknowledged that Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been particularly badly hit by Russian attacks.
Zelensky said at least seven more Patriot air-defence systems are urgently needed to defend Ukrainian cities. He repeatedly thanked the German government on Tuesday for their support.
German far right boycott speech
A few rows of empty seats in the otherwise packed parliamentary chamber stood out on Tuesday, as nearly all far-right lawmakers from the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party staged a boycott of Zelensky's speech.
They were joined by members of the upstart populist Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance (BSW), which broke away from the hard-left Die Linke (The Left) party and has been campaigning on a platform combining left-wing economic policy with some hard-right stances.
Both the AfD and BSW have vehemently opposed military aid for Ukraine. A number of AfD members in particular have expressed support for Russia and admiration for Putin.
Leaders of both parties attacked Zelensky personally in statements, accusing him of standing in the way of peace with Russia.
Politicians from mainstream German parties expressed disgust with both the AfD and the BSW for the stunt.
"The Kremlin probably ordered the absence. I have rarely experienced such disrespect," Social Democrat (SPD) Dirk Wiese told the Rheinische Post newspaper.
Thorsten Frei of the Christian Democrats (CDU), meanwhile, said "the AfD and BSW are once again underlining their contempt for the victims of the Russian war of aggression."
Scholz expressed concern about rising support for the far right at the press conference with Zelensky, but stressed that he does not think gains will do anything to threaten European support for Ukraine.
"An overwhelming majority of citizens support parties that also agree that Ukraine must be supported," Scholz said.
"That applies to Germany, but it also applies when we look at the European Parliament as a whole," he added.
