““Even if individual European friends think that it is possible – no, it is impossible. No one will risk without the United States””, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
Zelensky, in particular, emphasized that foreign military personnel, in the event of their deployment to Ukraine, will not be stationed in the center of Kyiv.
“They will not spend their time relaxed. This is very important because I heard some allies say, yes, it’s okay, we can be in the center of some city. No, no, we don’t need such a contingent,” he said.
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The president agreed that the peacekeepers should be on the front line, with the Ukrainian military, “because that would mean security.” At the same time, he added, such a mission is impossible without the participation of the United States:
“It will not succeed without the United States. I will explain why. Even if some European friends think that it is possible – no, it is impossible. First of all, no one will take risks without the US. Second: it can divide NATO, divide the USA and the European Union. This is Putin’s dream, to split this union.”
Zelensky also expressed the opinion that China could, together with US President Donald Trump, “push” Vladimir Putin to peace.
“But not without us, it’s important,” he added.
Earlier, the British press reported that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron began discussing the possibility of sending British and French soldiers to Ukraine as peacekeepers in the event that an agreement to end the Russian-Ukrainian war is reached.
Read also: European troops in Ukraine. Does the idea of sending a peacekeeping contingent have a chance of success?
Emmanuel Macron first spoke that European countries could send troops to Ukraine at the end of February 2024, but then this idea did not find support among the partner countries.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi said in Brussels last month without elaborating that he sees “positive developments” in the discussions regarding the possibility of deploying peacekeeping troops in Ukraine. And on January 13, he said that he spoke with his French colleague Emmanuel Macron and discussed the idea of placing “partner contingents” in Ukraine.
On January 16, Zelenskyi said that the placement of a foreign military contingent in Ukraine is being discussed with those countries that want or are able to do so, however, it is still too early to talk about details, in particular, regarding the number.