Italy's Foreign Minister holds talks with Zelenskyy, Kuleba in Kyiv

Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio on Thursday visited Kyiv to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, and Internal Affairs Minister Denys Monastyrskiy, the Italian foreign ministry said.

"The minister confirmed to the other party Italy's firm support for Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty, independence, and freedom, as well as the strong support for its European path and its future reconstruction," the ministry said on the website.

Di Maio and the Ukrainian leadership discussed the political, financial, and humanitarian assistance provided by Rome to Kyiv, as well as the sheltering of Ukrainian refugees in Italy .

Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine on February 24 in response to calls by the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk for protection from Ukrainian troops.

Western countries have since been supplying arms to Ukraine and have rolled out comprehensive sanctions against Russia.