Von der Leyen, Meloni in Kiev to mark two years of war

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and other leaders have travelled to Kiev to underline their support for Ukraine on the second anniversary of the Russian invasion.

The visit was intended "to celebrate the extraordinary resistance of the Ukrainian people," she wrote on the platform X, formerly Twitter, on Saturday morning.

"More than ever, we stand firmly by Ukraine. Financially, economically, militarily, morally. Until the country is finally free," von der Leyen wrote.

She handed over 50 vehicles to the Ukrainian police and prosecuting authorities during her visit.

The white all-terrain vehicles would help "to bring security and stability in the territories liberated by the brave Ukrainian Armed Forces, and support the population," she wrote in a post on X, accompanied by a video of her inspecting the vehicles.

The full-scale invasion of Ukraine ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin was launched in the early hours of February 24, 2022.

Russian forces initially advanced on several fronts including marching on the capital Kiev, but then concentrated on occupying areas in the east and south. Russia has since annexed four provinces in the east of Ukraine.

Despite massive Western military and financial aid, Moscow still controls almost a fifth of Ukraine's territory, including the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea, which was annexed in 2014.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is also in Kiev, as is Belgium's Prime Minister Alexander de Croo.

As acting chairwoman of the G7 group of democratic industrialized nations, Meloni will chair a leaders' videoconference from Kiev later on Saturday. Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky will also take part.

The G7 includes Italy, US, Canada, United Kingdom, Japan, France and Germany. Most of the leaders will join the meeting via video link.

The anniversary comes at a crucial time for Ukraine, with Russian troops reporting some progress in the east after a long period of an effective stalement. Ukrainian forces withdrew from the town of Avdiivka a week ago after months of heavy fighting.

Meanwhile, a $60 billion US aid package described by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as being "of fundamental importance for our defence" is currently held up in the US Congress.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg used the anniversary to express his certainty that Ukraine's future lies in the Western defence alliance.

"Ukraine will join NATO. It is not a question of if, but of when," he said in a video message released on Saturday.

"As we prepare you for that day, NATO will continue to stand with Ukraine. For your security, and for ours," Stoltenberg said.

He described the situation on the battlefront as "extremely serious," and said "there are no indications" that Russian President Vladimir Putin was preparing for peace.

Russian state news agency TASS reported on Saturday that Defence Minister Sergey Shoigu had visited troops and listened to reports by
commanders "in the special military operation area" in Ukraine. "Special military operation" is the term used by the Kremlin to describe the war.

Citing the Defence Ministry, TASS said Shoigu had listened to "the nature of the enemy’s activities and the fulfillment of combat missions by Russian troops."