[French President Emmanuel Macron, right, welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Elysee palace in Paris, Sunday, May 14, 2023. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a surprise visit to Paris for talks Sunday night with French President Emmanuel Macron, extending a multi-stop European tour that has elicited fresh pledges of military support as his country gears up for a counteroffensive against Russian occupation forces. /PTI]
Berlin, May 15 : Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who is currently on a visit to Germany, said that KIev had no plans to attack Russian territories.
He made the remarks on Sunday after talks in Berlin with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, reports the BBC.
"We are not attacking Russian territory," he said, adding: "We are preparing a counterattack to de-occupy the illegitimately conquered territories," Zelensky added.
On his part, Scholz vowed to back Ukraine "for as long as it is necessary", promising 2.7 billion euros worth of weapons, which includes the advanced German Leopard tanks and more anti-aircraft systems.
President Zelensky described the new tranche as "the largest since the beginning of the full-scale aggression" by Russia in February 2022.
Later on Sunday, he travelled to the western city of Aachen to receive the prestigious Charlemagne Prize awarded this year to him and the Ukrainian people.
The honour is given for efforts to foster European unity, the BBC reported.
"Ukraine incarnates everything the European idea is living for: the courage of convictions, the fight for values and freedom, the commitment to peace and unity," EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at the award ceremony.
Previous winners include Winston Churchill, Pope Francis and Bill Clinton.
Zelensky's remarks came amid Moscow's continued accusations that Ukraine has repeatedly hitting targets inside Russia, including a reported drone attack on the Kremlin earlier this month.
Although Ukraine has denied the accusations, it also stressed that it has a legitimate right to use force and other means to fully de-occupy its territories currently under Russian control.
/IANS