Kishida will “show respect to the courage and patience of the Ukrainian people who are standing up to defend their homeland under President Zelenskyy’s leadership, and show solidarity and unwavering support for Ukraine as head of Japan and chairman of G-7,” throughout his go to to Ukraine, the Japanese Foreign Ministry mentioned in asserting his journey to Kyiv.

At the talks, Kishida will present his “absolute rejection to Russia’s one-sided change to the status quo by invasion and force, and to affirm his commitment to defend the rules-based international order,” the ministry’s assertion mentioned.

Chinese chief Xi Jinping, in the meantime, is in Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin warmly welcomed Xi to the Kremlin on a go to each nations describe as a chance to deepen their “no-limits friendship.” Japan’s public tv NHK confirmed Kishida driving a practice from Poland heading to Kyiv. His shock journey to Ukraine comes simply hours after he met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.

Kishida, who’s to chair the Group of Seven summit in May, is the one G-7 chief who hasn’t visited Ukraine and was underneath strain to take action at dwelling. US President Joe Biden took an identical route to go to Kyiv final month, simply earlier than the primary anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Due to limitations of Japan’s pacifist structure, his journey was organized secretly. Kishida is Japan’s first postwar chief to enter a conflict zone. Kishida, invited by Zelenskyy in January to go to Kyiv, was additionally requested earlier than his journey to India a couple of hearsay of his attainable journey on the finish of March, denied it and mentioned nothing concrete has been determined.

Japan has joined the United States and European nations in sanctioning Russia over its invasion and offering humanitarian and financial assist for Ukraine.

Japan was fast to react as a result of it fears the attainable influence of a conflict in East Asia, the place China’s navy has grown more and more assertive and has escalated tensions round self-ruled Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its territory.

Kishida is predicted to supply persevering with assist for Ukraine when he meets with Zelenskyy.

Television footage on NHK confirmed Kishida getting on a practice from the Polish station of Przemysl close to the border with Ukraine, with quite a lot of officers.

Due to its pacifist ideas, Japan’s assist for Ukraine has additionally been restricted to non-combative navy gear comparable to helmets, bulletproof vests and drones, and humanitarian provides together with mills.

Japan has contributed to Ukraine greater than $7 billion, and accepted greater than 2,000 displaced Ukrainians and helped them with housing help and assist for jobs and training — a uncommon transfer for a rustic that’s identified for its strict immigration coverage.