Russia warns of Western plans to send troops to Ukraine

(Dan Tri) - Russia opposes the deployment of Western peacekeeping forces to Ukraine as part of any solution to end the conflict.

Ukrainian soldiers on the Donbass front line (Photo: Getty).

Western countries are discussing the possibility of deploying foreign troops in Ukraine to enforce any peace deal. French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk discussed the issue at a meeting in Warsaw this month.

In an interview published by the Russian Foreign Ministry on December 30, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told Tass news agency that Moscow opposes the above idea as well as other ideas proposed by US President-elect Donald Trump.

"Of course, we do not agree with the proposals put forward by representatives of the US president-elect to postpone Ukraine's NATO membership for 20 years and to send a peacekeeping force consisting of "British and European forces" to Ukraine," Lavrov said.

The Washington Post reported on December 20 that discussions on deploying troops from NATO member countries in Europe to Ukraine are said to be in the early stages.

The discussions come as NATO members consider measures to give Ukraine leverage in potential talks to end the conflict with Russia.

The idea was reportedly raised at a meeting chaired by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in Brussels, Belgium on December 18, which was attended by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and several leaders of the bloc.

The idea was also raised with US President-elect Donald Trump during recent talks in Paris, attended by President Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron.

Officials familiar with the discussions said Mr. Trump had expressed interest but had not yet committed to a position as his team was in the process of formulating policy.

The proposal would see a European-led peacekeeping force operating outside NATO, which leaders appear to see as a potential security guarantee for Ukraine, given that Kiev is unlikely to join the bloc in the near future.

President Macron, who first raised the idea in February, has called for support for the plan from a number of European countries, including Britain and some Baltic and Nordic states.

While the details of the proposal remain unclear, the force would require a significant commitment — potentially tens of thousands of troops — to be effective without being vulnerable to attack. Discussions have also focused on defining the force’s mission.

President Zelensky has publicly supported the proposal, stressing that it should complement Ukraine’s aspirations for NATO membership rather than replace it. He reiterated that the bloc’s collective defense clause remains the only “real guarantee” of Ukraine’s security.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said that, according to the revised version of Russia's nuclear doctrine, any aggressive action against Moscow by a non-nuclear-weapon state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear-weapon state, could be considered a "joint attack" and cross the nuclear threshold.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-gioi/nga-canh-bao-ke-hoach-cua-phuong-tay-dua-quan-toi-ukraine-20241231063927555.htm