Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held talks in Kiev on Tuesday with the president of Germany's upper parliamentary chamber, the Bundesrat.
During their hour-long discussion, Manuela Schwesig spoke in favour of Ukraine joining the European Union and of further military and economic support for the country as it fends off a Russian invasion.
The meeting took place just before the official start of Ukraine's EU accession negotiations in Luxembourg on Tuesday.
In addition to her role in the Bundesrat, Schwesig is also the premier of the north-eastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
The Bundesrat represents Germany's 16 federal states at the national level.
"This is an important day for Ukraine, but also for the European Union. The states [of Germany] support this accession," Schwesig said afterwards. The talks also covered regional partnerships.
Patriot system to be delivered shortly
Zelensky expressly thanked the German government for its help, said Schwesig, a member of the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD). Germany is Ukraine's second most important military supporter after the United States.
She said the Ukrainian armed forces must now be further supported, particularly with additional air defence systems.
A Patriot missile system currently stationed in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern for training purposes is to be delivered shortly.
"It is now important that it arrives in Ukraine to further protect the population from Russian attacks," said Schwesig. "This is urgently needed now."
Schwesig announced a German-Ukrainian economic conference in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in the autumn. The main focus will be on cooperation with her state's partner region of Chernihiv, north of Kiev, which borders Russia and Belarus.
Russians locked 350 people in a 200-square-metre cellar
After her visit to the capital, Schwesig gained an impression of the damage caused by the Russian war over the past two years.
She visited the village of Yahidne, where the Russian invaders imprisoned over 350 villagers in the basement of the local school for almost a month in 2022 in an area of just under 200 square metres. Due to the poor hygienic conditions and lack of water and food, 10 of them died.
The capital of the region, which is also called Chernihiv, was one of the first targets of the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022 and has been repeatedly attacked with drones and missiles since the Russian withdrawal at the end of March 2022.
Schwesig held political talks there about further aid.
Setting up shelters and training psychotherapists
In January, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern became the first former East German state to agree a partnership with a Ukrainian region and initially provided €250,000 ($267,603) for shelters in four schools in Chernihiv.
A further €100,000 per year is to be channelled into other projects, including the training of psychotherapists at two hospitals in the region. Schwesig visited one of these, a paediatric clinic, during her visit. She emphasized that the partnership with the region is not limited to wartime but is designed for the long term.
Schwesig has been president of Germany's Bundesrat since November 2023, making her the fourth-highest state office holder in Germany. She is the first head of the upper house of parliament to visit Ukraine.
She had already met Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, Parliamentary Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk and Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko on Monday.
Former ties to Russia not a topic of discussion
Schwesig had a difficult time in Ukraine due to her close cooperation with Russia even after the annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and her commitment to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany.
Shortly after the Russian invasion in 2022, she made a U-turn and described her actions at the time as a mistake. According to her delegation, this was no longer an issue during her talks in Ukraine.