German President Steinmeier reaches Kyiv for surprise visit

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived in Kyiv on Tuesday on a surprise visit, his spokesperson confirmed. Six months back, Steinmeier's offer to visit Kyiv was snubbed by Ukraine. Steinmeier had then come under heavy fire for his years-long detente policy with Moscow.

The president also had to abort a trip at the last minute last week over security reasons, sparking criticisms from Germany's opposition.

"I am looking forward to my meeting with (Ukrainian) President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv," he said, according to a confirmation sent by his spokeswoman.

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He later admitted that his detente approach towards Russian President Vladimir Putin had been misguided, and that there could be "no return to normal with Putin's Russia".

Steinmeier will also visit a town near the Belarusian border, which Ukraine says has been liberated from Russian troops. However, it has suffered heavy infrastructural damage and Steinmeier will provide aid to the municipality for its energy infrastructure, the spokesperson said.

"My message to Ukrainians: You can count on Germany", Steinmeier said.

Steinmeier is serving his second stint as German president and was a foreign minister in two of former chancellor Angela Merkel's governments.

Meanwhile, seven civilians were killed and three injured in the Ukraine city of Bakhmut in the eastern Donetsk region, the regional governor said Tuesday. Three bodies of civilians killed earlier were also discovered in two places in the region, Governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Telegram.

(With inputs from agencies)