German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met with Denys Shmyhal on Sunday as the Ukrainian prime minister sought more heavy weapons from Berlin.

Shmyhal is the first high-level Ukrainian official to visit Germany in several months and acknowledged that Berlin has stepped up its military help, with heavy armaments such as the howitzer 2000 and rocket launchers all "working well on the battle field," the Ukrainian prime minister said.

Shmyhal anticipates the arrival from Berlin of the air defense system Iris-T in the fall, Shmyhal added, and Kyiv "hopes that Germany will become one of the leaders in the process of developing Ukrainian air defense."

Scholz welcomed Shmyhal with military honors. During the meeting, Scholz vowed to continue supporting Ukraine not only militarily, but also politically and financially, according to the chancellor's spokesperson.

Shmyhal said on Twitter that he and Scholz "discussed strengthening defense capacity and further comprehensive support. Europe's energy security is on the agenda."

Improved relations

Earlier in the day, Shmyhal also met with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier where he also iterated "the need to provide weapons for Ukraine," before adding that he appreciated Germany's "solidarity with Ukrainians and support."

Germany will "continue to stand reliably by Ukraine's side," Steinmeier reassured Shmygal, according to the German president's spokeswoman.

The cordial read-outs of their talks marked a stark change in tone from previous months, when a diplomatic row in April erupted after Steinmeier's offer to visit Ukraine appeared to be rejected.

jsi/wd (AFP, Reuters)

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