Japan's FM Hayashi meets Ukrainian President Zelenskyy

The Japanese foreign minister has told the Ukrainian president that people from the public and private sectors in Japan will support the reconstruction of Ukraine.

Hayashi Yoshimasa met Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv on Saturday. The foreign minister was joined by senior officials from Japanese communications and medical companies.

The talks were held in advance of a conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine's economy, which is scheduled to take place in Japan at the beginning of next year.

Hayashi and Zelenskyy agreed to hold discussions aimed at drawing up a security cooperation agreement, based on the declaration released by the Group of Seven countries in July.

Hayashi and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held a joint news conference following their meeting.

Hayashi said, "Japan will walk with Ukraine until peace has been returned to this beautiful land."

Kuleba said the bilateral relationship between Ukraine and Japan has reached "an unprecedented high level."

Hayashi also attended a handover ceremony during his visit. Twenty-four Japanese trucks were donated to Ukraine. The vehicles will be used to remove landmines and unexploded ordnances.

The Japanese foreign minister said Japan will also provide two electronic transforming facilities that will help the Ukrainians deal with extremely cold weather during the winter.