German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday congratulated comedian Volodymyr Zelensky on his landslide victory in Ukraine's presidential election, saying she hopes the vote will help stabilise the troubled country.
"I congratulate you on your election," Merkel said in a statement.
"The stabilisation of Ukraine and a peaceful conflict resolution are as close to my heart as the implementation of central reforms of the judiciary, decentralisation and the fight against corruption," she said in a statement.
"The Federal government will continue to actively assist Ukraine in its right to sovereignty and territorial integration in the future."