Scholz: G7 will support Ukraine 'for as long as necessary'

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said this in an interview with Germany's dpa news agency published on June 18, Ukrinform reports, citing AP.

According to Scholz, he wants to use next week's meeting with fellow G7 leaders in the Bavarian village of Elmau to discuss Ukraine's long-term prospects.

"We will continue to support Ukraine for as long as necessary," he said. "We want to make sure that Russian President (Vladimir Putin's) calculations do not work out. Putin obviously hopes that everything will fall into place once he has conquered enough land and the international community will return to business as usual. That is an illusion."

According to Scholz, he and his counterparts from France, Italy and Romania had discussed further weapons supplies for Ukraine — specifically ammunition and artillery — with President Volodymyr Zelensky during their visit to Kyiv on June 16.

The four leaders also backed Ukraine's bid for membership of the European Union, a stance Scholz said he hoped all of the bloc's countries would support at a gathering in Brussels next week.