EU diplomats in Ukraine to reaffirm support

KIEV

Several European diplomats were in Kiev Tuesday to mark the four-year anniversary of the Bucha massacre and reaffirm their support for Ukraine, amid ructions in the bloc over Hungary blocking a 90-billion-euro loan for the country.

The European Union's top diplomat Kaja Kallas, as well as the foreign ministers of Germany, Poland, Italy and other EU countries were in Ukraine for the occasion.

"Each visit is a powerful reminder of Ukraine's courage and resilience. Europe stands by your side. We will keep providing military, financial, energy, and humanitarian support," Kallas said on X.

The diplomats later visited the Kiev suburb of Bucha, where they marked the four-year anniversary of a Russian massacre there.

The bodies of hundreds of civilians who had been summarily executed were found on the streets of Bucha and neighboring areas after Russian forces abandoned Kiev's suburbs in the early stages of the invasion.

The visit comes amid stalling diplomatic efforts to end the four-year war, and as a 90-billion-euro ($100 billion) EU loan for Ukraine remains held up over opposition from EU member Hungary.

The lack of funding from the European Union has strained Kiev's finances.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on March 30 rejected reports that the government could suspend the payment of salaries for soldiers and state workers because of the blocked funds.