German president takes cover in air raid shelter on Ukraine trip
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier was forced to take cover in an air raid shelter during his first visit to Ukraine since Russia's invasion.
The trip came six months after the president, then under heavy criticism for his years-long detente policy with Moscow, was snubbed by Kyiv.
After arriving in the capital, he headed to the northern town of Koriukivka -- but was forced to take cover when sirens went off.
"We spent the first hour and a half in an air raid shelter," he said.
"That really impressed upon us the conditions in which people here are living."
Koriukivka was occupied by Russian forces at the start of the war. Russian troops have since pulled back but the town is facing a bleak winter due to damaged infrastructure and difficulties with essential supplies.
Steinmeier hailed the courage of the town's residents, who he said had "confronted tanks with their bare hands, and actually brought them to a halt".
The power supply has been partially restored, he said, and a local heating plant will be converted so it can operate with wood harvested locally.
On his arrival earlier in Kyiv, Steinmeier had pledged that Germany will "further support Ukraine: militarily, politically, financially".
Steinmeier also championed the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany, which has now been halted over Moscow's aggression in Ukraine.
