Zelenskyy starts his first visit to Austria

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has begun his first visit to Austria since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

As reported by Austrian daily newspaper Der Standard, Volodymyr Zelenskyy and First Lady Olena Zelenska were greeted with ceremonies by Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen and his wife Doris Schmidauer at 14:00 Kyiv time (13:00 Vienna time).

A joint press conference is scheduled for 15:00 in Vienna (16:00 Kyiv time), and Zelenskyy will meet with Chancellor Christian Stocker at 15:30 (16:30 Kyiv time).

Security measures have been strengthened in the centre of Vienna due to the arrival of the Ukrainian president, with many streets blocked off from 09:00.

The Office of the President reported that Zelenskyy and Van der Bellen will discuss the continued support for Ukraine, deepening cooperation across various sectors and the involvement of Austrian businesses in Ukraine's post-war recovery.

Discussions will additionally focus on humanitarian mine clearance, energy recovery, food security and the construction of shelters.

"A separate focus of the talks will be the return of Ukrainian children who were illegally deported and forcibly transferred by Russia. Additionally, the parties will discuss the children's continued medical treatment, rehabilitation and recovery," the Office of the President stated.

Earlier, it was reported that during Zelenskyy's visit, Austria plans to offer Vienna as a venue for negotiations on ending the Russo-Ukrainian war. 

The far-right Freedom Party of Austria considers Zelenskyy's visit a "threat to the country's neutrality" and requested a government report on how it was being prepared.