Why did Merz visit Kyiv without announcing it in advance?

Officials did not publicly confirm the trip beforehand; Merz said he came because Ukraine 'needs all our support in the coming weeks,' according to the Moscow Times.

What aid did Germany pledge during the visit?

Germany pledged around €1 billion for long-range weapons production, €350 million for energy infrastructure repair, and interceptor drones to counter Russian attack drones, according to Ukrinform and France 24.

Did Russian attacks affect the visit?

Yes. Four air raid alerts sounded in Kyiv during the visit and a Russian drone struck the Northern Bridge over the Dnipro River, according to NBC News and France 24; reports differ on whether anyone was injured.

Is this the first time a German chancellor has visited Kyiv during the war?

No. It was Merz's second visit as chancellor and the fourth by a German chancellor since the full-scale invasion began in 2022, according to Ukrinform.

How did Russia respond to the visit?

Russia's Foreign Ministry had warned foreigners to leave Kyiv the day before, and the Kremlin later said such actions 'naturally hinder peace efforts,' according to the Moscow Times.

World · News

Merz Makes Unannounced Kyiv Visit, Pledges Over €1 Billion as Russian Drones Strike

Published: October 4, 2026 at 10:45 PM UTC

In brief

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz made an unannounced visit to Kyiv on October 4, 2026, pledging roughly €1.35 billion in military and energy aid while Russian drones struck a bridge during his stay. The trip was Merz's second to Ukraine as chancellor and came a day after Moscow warned foreign nationals to leave the capital.

An Unannounced Arrival Amid Air Raid Sirens

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz arrived in Kyiv by special train on the morning of Sunday, October 4, 2026, on a visit that had not been announced in advance, according to Ukrinform and France 24. He was accompanied by Economy Minister Katherina Reiche and roughly ten executives from German defence and energy companies, including Siemens Energy and Hensoldt, the Moscow Times reported.

Merz was welcomed by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha and Germany's ambassador before meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky. 'I travelled to Kyiv today because Ukraine needs all our support in the coming weeks,' Merz told reporters at the station, according to the Moscow Times.

Four air raid alerts sounded while the German delegation was in the city, NBC News reported. A Russian drone struck Kyiv's Northern Bridge over the Dnipro River during the visit, damaging the roadway, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said according to France 24 and the Moscow Times. NBC News reported that two people were injured in the strike; Franceinfo and the Moscow Times, which also covered the bridge strike, did not report any casualties.

If Russia is not stopped, sooner or later its war machine will turn against us.

— Friedrich Merz, German Chancellor

Germany Pledges Military and Energy Aid

During the visit, the German delegation announced a package of military and energy assistance and finalised an agreement for joint production of weapons and drones with Ukraine, according to Ukrinform, France 24 and Euronews.

Aid announced during Merz's October 4, 2026 visit
Item	Amount	Purpose (source)
Long-range weapons production fund	€1 billion (about $1.13bn)	Joint production of weapons able to strike more than 600 miles, per Ukrinform and NBC News
Energy infrastructure repair	€350 million (about $395m)	Repair of power plants damaged by Russian strikes ahead of winter, per Ukrinform and France 24
Interceptor drones	1,000 units, described by other outlets as 'thousands'	To counter Russian jet-powered Shahed-type attack drones, per Kyiv Post and France 24

Merz said Germany would also push to speed up Ukraine's European Union accession process, according to Ukrinform. Zelensky told Merz that Russian bombardment was causing residents 'terrible nights and days,' Al Jazeera reported.

Russian Warnings Before and During the Visit

The day before Merz's arrival, Russia's Foreign Ministry had warned foreign nationals and diplomatic staff to leave Kyiv, saying it was planning retaliatory strikes, France 24 and the Moscow Times reported. The Kremlin later said such actions 'naturally hinder peace efforts,' according to the Moscow Times.

Al Jazeera reported that the bridge struck during Merz's visit was the second Kyiv bridge hit by Russian forces that weekend, as part of what several outlets described as a campaign targeting crossings between the capital's districts to disrupt logistics.

Background: Germany's Shifting Role

This was Merz's second visit to Ukraine since becoming chancellor, after a first trip in May 2025, and the fourth visit by a German chancellor since Russia's full-scale invasion began in February 2022, according to Ukrinform.

Euronews reported that domestic support for continued German aid has been eroding, with over 40% of Germans polled saying Berlin's assistance to Ukraine has already gone too far. Separately, France 24 reported that Zelensky said during the visit that the United States had proposed holding technical-level trilateral talks between Ukraine, Russia and the US by the end of October.

Questions

Why did Merz visit Kyiv without announcing it in advance?: Officials did not publicly confirm the trip beforehand; Merz said he came because Ukraine 'needs all our support in the coming weeks,' according to the Moscow Times.
What aid did Germany pledge during the visit?: Germany pledged around €1 billion for long-range weapons production, €350 million for energy infrastructure repair, and interceptor drones to counter Russian attack drones, according to Ukrinform and France 24.
Did Russian attacks affect the visit?: Yes. Four air raid alerts sounded in Kyiv during the visit and a Russian drone struck the Northern Bridge over the Dnipro River, according to NBC News and France 24; reports differ on whether anyone was injured.
Is this the first time a German chancellor has visited Kyiv during the war?: No. It was Merz's second visit as chancellor and the fourth by a German chancellor since the full-scale invasion began in 2022, according to Ukrinform.
How did Russia respond to the visit?: Russia's Foreign Ministry had warned foreigners to leave Kyiv the day before, and the Kremlin later said such actions 'naturally hinder peace efforts,' according to the Moscow Times.

How the world is telling it

FrenchFrench outlets Franceinfo and France 24 framed the visit as a demonstration of European solidarity with Ukraine, emphasising that a Russian drone hit a Kyiv bridge during Merz's stay and noting Zelensky's disclosure that the US had proposed trilateral talks with Russia by the end of October.

Sources

This piece was prepared with artificial intelligence and passed an automated source check before publication. If you see an error, ask for a correction. Request a correction or reply · How we make this

WorldNewsOctober 11, 2026 at 04:38 PM UTC
Elephant herds trample crops, breach school walls in Chhattisgarh's Korba and Jashpur
A herd of about 52–53 wild elephants moved through Korba district's Pasan and Katghora forest ranges on October 11, 2026, damaging a mission school's boundary wall and hostel, trampling paddy crops and forcing children to be sent home. A separate tusker entered Jashpur town the same weekend, damaging walls at a hospital, a college and a church. No deaths or injuries were reported from these incidents, and forest officials are tracking the herd to steer it away from villages.
WorldNewsOctober 11, 2026 at 04:11 PM UTC
US Fighter Jet Disables Cargo Ship Trying to Run Iran Blockade in Gulf of Oman
US Central Command said a fighter jet disabled the Panama-flagged cargo ship M/V Ocean Molica in the Gulf of Oman on October 10 after its crew ignored warnings and tried to break the US naval blockade of Iran. The crew was unharmed, but the vessel's propulsion was destroyed by a precision munition. The strike is part of a blockade that CENTCOM says has now disabled four ships and turned back 135 since mid-July.
WorldNewsOctober 11, 2026 at 06:42 AM UTC
Could Britain rejoin the EU faster than other candidates? What officials say
EU officials say a future British application to rejoin the bloc could move faster than for other candidate countries because the UK retains institutional memory and existing legal alignment from its previous membership. But they insist London could not keep its old opt-outs: Brussels says a returning UK would have to commit to the euro, lose its former budget rebate and accept standard membership terms.
WorldNewsOctober 10, 2026 at 12:42 PM UTC
Chile's Kast to Visit Bolivia Oct. 16-17 in First Such Trip Since 1955
Chilean President José Antonio Kast will travel to La Paz on October 16 and 17, 2026, to meet Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz, both governments' foreign ministries confirmed. The two sides plan to work through an 11-point agenda and sign a set of economic and security agreements, in what Bolivian and Chilean officials describe as the first visit by a sitting Chilean president to Bolivia in more than seven decades.