Merz at Kyiv academy Urges Putin to end the war

Oct 4

AP's edited on-site footage shows Friedrich Merz and Volodymyr Zelenskyy at Kyiv's damaged National Academy of Sciences, intercut with damage to the building and vehicles. Merz refers to the previous Monday's attack on the academy in central Kyiv, a few hundred metres from the German embassy, and to that Sunday morning's air-raid alert. He urges Putin to end the war, expresses readiness for talks about ending it, and demands an end to attacks on Ukraine's civilian population. He calls the attacks daily war crimes and notes the country's preparations for winter. Zelenskyy calls the attack terrible, says attacks continue even while the German chancellor and delegation are present, and thanks them for coming. The war-crime characterization and responsibility claims remain attributed to the speakers. This release gives no casualty figure, new aid amount, agreement or accepted negotiating arrangement.

During an October 4, 2026 visit with Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Kyiv's damaged National Academy of Sciences, Friedrich Merz urges Vladimir Putin to end the war and expresses readiness for talks while demanding an end to attacks on Ukraine's civilian population. He invokes the previous Monday's academy strike and that morning's air-raid alert, calls the attacks daily war crimes and refers to winter preparations. Zelenskyy condemns continued attacks during the German delegation's presence and thanks Merz for coming. These are the leaders' public remarks and assessments; no accepted talks, ceasefire or new aid package is established in the AP excerpt. DD India's complete October 4 site quotation also retains Merz's closing condition that talks require the guns to fall silent. Tagesschau carries the same outdoor appeal and Zelenskyy's subsequent thanks. These reports are compatible accounts of the academy-site intervention; the separate aid/business undertaking and Merz's later interview about negotiating participation remain distinct occurrences.