Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyj was in Berlin on Friday afternoon. Zelensky had previously met Pope Francis in Rome. After he left the city in the evening, the police lifted numerous closures.
Since the President of Ukraine is one of the most vulnerable politicians in the world, the impact on the city was serious. Since the morning, the S-Bahn has only been running on a significantly reduced timetable. The first streets in the government district, such as the Spreeweg at Bellevue Palace and John-Foster-Dulles-Allee, were closed at midday.
S-Bahn traffic was reduced on many routes. At around 10 a.m. it was said: “The announced restrictions on the S-Bahn are now in place due to the state guest.” Zelenskyj met Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on Friday afternoon, who promised him further military aid. A meeting with Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier (both SPD) was also planned. The Ukrainian president last visited Berlin in June.
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Since he was staying at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel at the Zoo at the time, there were far greater restrictions than today, Friday. The BVG had to stop bus services at Zoo station because the streets around the hotel were blocked with armored cars. .
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Zelensky’s visit causes massive restrictions on rail traffic
Since the morning it was clear in the train app that regional transport on the light rail had been completely stopped. Two regional express lines will be extended even further: the RE7 between Königs Wusterhausen and Wannsee and the RE6 between Hennigsdorf and Charlottenburg. The journey to BER airport was also complicated: the regional lines RE8 and RB23 were canceled and only the airport express ran to the airport until the evening.
Zelenskyj visits: Police cordon off government district
The police took extensive precautions to secure the government district and the access roads. The police did not want to provide details for security reasons. There are usually numerous police officers on duty for the barriers, as well as dog squads, special forces snipers and the water police on the Spree.
Especially on the S-Bahn route between Zoo Station and Ostbahnhof, traffic was significantly thinned out from the morning onwards. The section runs along Bellevue Palace, the seat of the Federal President.
Berlin police are preparing for a visit to Zelensky
The police had announced that hundreds of officers would be deployed.
The number of trains has been reducedso that no trains are left standing on the open route in the event of a short-term closure. Were in the past Several times passengers got off trains that had stopped and walked to the nearest train station – which ultimately brought operations to a standstill.
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Drivers expect traffic jams in the capital due to the state visit
It was a major operation for the police. The police union announced that they no longer expected “that our colleagues would be able to take a deep breath,” as spokesman Benjamin Jendro said.
Zelensky also has the highest conceivable threat level, “which of course creates a huge range of security measures for which we have to bring all available people into service,” said Jendro. Police officers from other federal states and the federal police came to support. (with dpa)