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German Chancellor Friedrich Merz traveled to Kyiv amid air raid sirens and explosions, touring attack sites and telling Zelenskyy that Ukraine 'can continue to count on' German support, while calling on Putin to end the 'senseless war.' During the visit, Germany pledged a new assistance package worth more than €1.3 billion and signed roughly €8.5 billion in defence and energy agreements with companies including Diehl, Siemens and Ukrenergo, focused on air defence and winter energy security. Germany also committed to funding localized production in Ukraine of tens of thousands of Quantum WIY interceptor drones to counter jet-powered Shahed UAVs, and Zelenskyy announced a successful test of Ukraine's own 'Spys' interceptor drone following talks with Merz. The visit underscored Berlin's growing role as a key military backer of Ukraine as Russian strikes intensify.