Twenty-six Western allies have formally committed to deploying troops “by land, sea or air” to Ukraine the day after a ceasefire deal is agreed, Emmanuel Macron has said.
The French leader made the announcement after a summit of 35 countries dubbed the “Coalition of the Willing”.
However, hopes of a deal to end the fighting have dimmed since Russia’s Vladimir Putin met US President Donald Trump in Alaska last month.
Trump spoke over the phone to Western leaders after Thursday’s meeting, and Macron said US support for their “reassurance force” would be finalised in the coming days.
There was no confirmation of direct US involvement, even though Macron said he had “no doubt” of US willingness to be part of security guarantees for Ukraine.
Trump recently indicated that US backing could “probably” come in the form of air support, and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky said he had spoken to the US president about “maximum protection for Ukraine’s skies”. Kyiv had proposed a format for the US to consider, he added.
Trump also said the EU should work with the US to halt imports of Russian oil and gas, to halt Russia’s “war machine by economic means”, according to an account of the phone-call from Finnish President Alexander Stubb.
The 27-member European Union has set a target of ending all gas and oil imports by the end of 2027. A White House official pointed out that Russia had received €1.1bn (£954m; $1.3bn) in fuel sales from the EU in one year, although the true figure is far higher.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said Western allies now had an “unbreakable pledge” to Ukraine, backed by the US, and had to press Russia to end the war, according to a Downing Street spokeswoman.
Few countries have openly promised to deploy troops on the ground in Ukraine in the event of a deal, and the US has already ruled out such a move. European diplomats have suggested that committing troops at this point would probably help Putin’s narrative against the West.
Moscow has made clear that no Western forces should be deployed to Ukraine and has insisted that it should be one of the countries acting as “guarantors” – an idea rejected by Kyiv and its allies.
Meanwhile, Russia was continuing to send troops into Ukraine despite the latest attempts to set ceasefire talks, Macron complained.
In the latest violence, two people clearing mines were killed in a Russian attack in northern Ukraine on Thursday.
Ukraine and its allies believe a ceasefire should be agreed before any attempt at securing a broader peace deal, although Russia disagrees.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said following the meeting that the first priority was to secure a ceasefire at a summit involving Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, and then provide “strong security guarantees”.
Zelensky’s top officials held talks in Paris with US special envoy Steve Witkoff on Thursday.
(BBC)
