Russian drone forces German minister to cut Ukraine trip short

Annalena Baerbock was visiting a waterworks facility in Ukraine to coincide with the two-year anniversary of the war

Germany’s foreign minister was forced to abandon a diplomatic trip to Ukraine on Sunday after a drone hovered above her (AFP via Getty Images)

Germany’s foreign minister was forced to abandon a diplomatic trip to Ukraine on Sunday after a drone hovered above her.

Annalena Baerbock was visiting a waterworks facility in Mykolayiv to coincide with the two-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine.

However, a Russian drone was spotted nearby forcing her to leave the scene and drive west to Moldova, according to German broadcaster ZDF.

It came after she pledged an £85 million aid package for Ukraine and said Germany is “racking our brains” to find a way to deliver more aid.

“Of course, everything (in regards to military support) we are delivering is too little,” she said at a press conference after paying an unannounced visit to the country.

Germany's foreign minister Annalena Baerbock and Head of Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration Vitaliy Kim stand next to the destroyed administrative centre of Mykolaiv damaged by a strike in 2022 (AFP via Getty Images)

“We’re racking our brains, especially through the past year, about the issue of how to deliver more, including long-range weapons systems,” she said at an event in Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Odesa on Saturday, held jointly with her Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba on the second anniversary of Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine.

Ukrainian leaders have been pushing their Western counterparts to deliver new weapons systems, above all longer-range missiles to strike further behind Russian lines, such as U.S. ATACMS and Germany’s Taurus cruise missiles.

German lawmakers approved further military support for Ukraine on Thursday, including long-range weapon systems, but rejected a call by the opposition to deliver Taurus to Kyiv.

German officials have cited concerns that the missiles could escalate the war inside Russian territory and could be seen as more direct German involvement in the conflict.

Western leaders rallied round Kyiv on Saturday, looking to dispel concerns the West is losing interest in the conflict.

“It is totally understandable that people in Ukraine say we need more of everything,” Baerbock said.

Her Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba said he would not go into detail about weapons and additional air defences that he said had been discussed, but added there were concrete offers available and Germany would work through them bilaterally with Ukraine or in larger settings.