European leaders visit Ukraine, dangling hope of EU membership

Experts work in a crater after a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's invasion on Ukraine, in the town of Pokrovsk, in Donetsk region, Ukraine June 15, 2022. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich

KYIV/IRPIN, Ukraine (Reuters) - The leaders of Germany, France and Italy, all criticised in the past by Kyiv for support viewed as too cautious, visited Ukraine on Thursday and offered the hope of EU membership to a country pleading for weapons to fend off Russia's invasion.

Air raid sirens blared in Kyiv as the visit by French President Emmanuel Macron, Germany's Olaf Scholz and Italy's Mario Draghi began, with the leaders touring a nearby town wrecked early in the war.