Brussels, 2 February 2023 (dpa/MIA) - European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Thursday a new €450 million ($491 million) aid package and other support measures after a meeting of several commissioners with Ukrainian government members in Kiev.

"[The European Union] is sending today a very clear message to Ukraine and beyond about our collective strength and resolve in the face of Russia's brutal aggression," von der Leyen said in a statement.

Of the new financial aid, €145 million is earmarked for humanitarian assistance and €305 million for the repair of damaged infrastructure.

The announcement is the latest in a series of aid pledges made during a visit by von der Leyen and 15 other commission officials.

Speaking earlier alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, the commission president said that the bloc will provide Ukraine with €150 million for energy equipment as well as 35 million energy-efficient light bulbs and 2,400 generators after repeated Russian strikes against energy infrastructure.

EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell told Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal that EU countries plan to train a total of 30,000 Ukrainian soldiers, doubling the target of the EU's ongoing military training mission which was previously at 15,000.

Ukrainian soldiers are to receive specialized training as well as technical instruction for new equipment including for Leopard 2 tanks, Borrell said on Twitter.

Borrell also shared plans with Shmyhal to provide €25 million to Ukraine to help fund de-mining operations.

"Protecting civilians and their livelihood is a priority," he wrote on Twitter.

Von der Leyen said that the EU's economic, humanitarian and military support for Ukraine amounts so far to almost €50 billion.

The European Commission also signed an agreement with the Ukrainian government allowing the country to move closer to the bloc's single market in the future.

In order to hold Russia accountable for the war against Ukraine, a centre for evidence is to be set up in The Hague, von der Leyen also announced.

European Council President Charles Michel is expected to arrive on Friday for a summit meeting with Zelensky, where talks on Ukraine's ambition to join the EU will be further discussed.

The Ukrainian government voiced hopes to start formal membership negotiations "as quickly and successfully as possible."

Von der Leyen praised Ukraine's "impressive progress" on Thursday, accession however is a highly complex and lengthy multi-step process of legal reforms and alignment with the EU's rulebook.

Taking the hurdle from candidate status, as held by Ukraine since last summer, to official talks, has in the past in sometimes taken more than a decade.

The EU's support for Zelensky's previously announced 10-point plan to restore peace, the reconstruction of Ukraine and justice for war crimes committed by Russia are also on Friday's agenda.