UK and France to Deploy Forces to Ukraine if a Peace Agreement is Finalized
The London and Paris have inked a statement of purpose concerning the stationing of troops in the nation should a peace deal be made with Russia, the British leader, Keir Starmer, has stated.
After talks with Kyiv's partners in the French capital, he indicated that the allies would "establish military hubs throughout Ukraine and build protected facilities for weapons and equipment" to deter any future incursion.
The allied nations also put forward that the United States would assume leadership in verifying a ceasefire.
Moscow has on multiple occasions warned that any non-Ukrainian military in Ukraine would be considered a "acceptable aim", but has not yet responded on this recent development.
Context and Ongoing Conflict
The Kremlin's head Vladimir Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, and Russian forces at this time controls approximately 20% of Ukrainian territory.
"This represents an essential component of our pledge to be alongside Ukraine for the duration," commented Starmer.
Top officials and senior officials from the "Coalition of the Willing" participated in the recent discussions.
Addressing reporters at a combined announcement, the Prime Minister further said: "It establishes the framework for the legal framework under which allied and coalition forces could operate on Ukraine's territory, protecting Ukraine's skies and seas, and regenerating Ukraine's armed forces for the years ahead."
The UK prime minister went on to say that Britain would be involved in any Washington-directed confirmation of a possible truce.
Protection Pledges and Negotiation Stances
Senior US negotiator Steve Witkoff stated that "lasting safety pledges and robust prosperity commitments are vital to a enduring ceasefire" in Ukraine – mentioning a key requirement made by the Ukrainian government.
Witkoff noted the partner nations had "mostly completed" their work on establishing such assurances "so that the Ukrainian people know that when this conflict ends, it ends forever."
The former US envoy, US President Donald Trump's representative, also participated in the negotiations.
Meanwhile, President Macron Emmanuel Macron declared that Ukraine's allies had made "significant progress" at the negotiations.
He noted that "strong" safety pledges for the Ukrainian government had been agreed in the case of a possible truce.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said that a "huge step forward" had been made in the negotiations, but added that he would only deem efforts to be "adequate" if they led to the cessation of the war.
Earlier, he indicated a peace agreement was "largely prepared". Finalizing the last 10% would "determine the fate of the agreement, the fate of Ukraine and Europe".
Remaining Challenges
- Land and security guarantees have been at the forefront of ongoing disputes for the parties involved.
- Putin has repeatedly warned that Ukrainian troops must withdraw from all of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region or Russia will take control, rejecting any concession over how to conclude the war.
- Kyiv has to date rejected surrendering any land, but has suggested that Ukraine could pull back its forces to an designated point – but only if Russia reciprocates.
Russia currently controls about 75% of the Donetsk oblast and some 99% of the neighbouring Luhansk region. The pair of oblasts form the heartland of Donbas.
The earlier US-led 28-point peace plan that was extensively reported to the media last year was viewed by Ukraine and its partners in Europe as being strongly biased in Moscow's direction.
This triggered weeks of focused discussions – with all sides trying to amend the proposal.
The previous month, Kyiv presented the US an updated 20-point plan – as well as additional documents outlining possible defense assurances and plans for Ukraine's reconstruction, he said.
