Twenty-six nations have pledged to provide postwar security guarantees to Ukraine, which will include an international force on land and sea and in the air, French President Emmanuel Macron said after a summit meeting of Kyiv’s allies on Thursday.
Macron said he, fellow European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy held a call with U.S. President Donald Trump after their summit and U.S. contributions to the guarantees would be finalised in the coming days.
The meeting of 35 leaders from the “coalition of the willing” – of mainly European countries – was intended to finalise security guarantees and ask Trump for the backing that Europeans say is vital to make such guarantees viable.
Security guarantees are intended to reassure Ukraine and deter Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, from attacking its neighbour again.
“The day the conflict stops, the security guarantees will be deployed,” Macron told a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris, standing alongside Zelenskiy.
European officials say peace looks a distant prospect for now but they want to be ready whenever the war ends. They also see the planning of security guarantees as a way to reassure Kyiv of their support and hope Trump will join their efforts.
Macron initially said the 26 nations – which he did not name – would deploy to Ukraine. But he later said some countries would provide guarantees while remaining outside Ukraine, for example by helping to train and equip Kyiv’s forces.
He did not say how many troops would be involved in the guarantees.
‘VERY SPECIFIC SUBSTANCE’
Germany and other countries pledged they would be involved in that effort. But Berlin said it would decide on a military commitment only when conditions were clear, including the extent of U.S. involvement in security guarantees.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni made clear she would not send troops to Ukraine but said Italy was open to monitoring a ceasefire and training Ukrainian troops outside the country.
France and Britain, which co-chair the coalition of the willing, have indicated they are open to deploying troops to Ukraine after the war ends.
REUTERS
