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18-03-2025
LONDON: A “significant number” of countries are willing to provide peacekeeping troops in Ukraine in the event of a peace deal with Russia, a spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday.
Britain and France have spearheaded efforts to offer a peacekeeping plan for Ukraine after U.S. President Donald Trump began talks to press for a peace deal with Russia.
More than 30 countries are expected to be involved in the so-called ‘coalition of the willing’ to support Ukraine, Starmer’s spokesperson told reporters.
“The contribution capabilities will vary, but this will be a significant force, with a significant number of countries providing troops.”
Russia has repeatedly rejected the idea of soldiers from countries belonging to the NATO military alliance being stationed in Ukraine.
Asked if the peacekeeping troops would be allowed to fire back if targeted, the spokesperson said military planning meetings were taking place to go through the details.
Starmer hosted a virtual meeting on Saturday with leaders from Europe and other countries to build support for the coalition before military planners are due to meet in Britain on Thursday to discuss how a truce could be guaranteed.
Asked about Russian comments that Moscow would not accept European peacekeepers in Ukraine, Starmer’s spokesperson said; “it is worth remembering that Russia didn’t ask Ukraine when it deployed North Korean troops to the frontline last year.”
Britain and France are both continuing to push the United States for security guarantees to deter any future Russian attacks.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Saturday that Western allies other than the US were stepping up preparations to support Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire with Russia, with defence chiefs set to firm up “robust plans” next week.
Starmer hosted a virtual meeting to marshal more pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to accept a ceasefire deal being pushed by US President Donald Trump, and to gather commitments to help secure any agreement something Trump has made clear he expects Europe to take on.
Around two dozen leaders took part, including those from Germany, France, Italy, Canada and Australia, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and NATO’s secretary general but not the US.
Starmer said the “coalition of the willing” had reaffirmed its commitment both to helping Ukraine resist Russia’s three-year-old invasion and to securing any ceasefire that emerges from Trump’s overtures to Russia.
While Russia has welcomed the ceasefire proposal in principle, it has also set conditions that essentially restate its war aims, suggesting that any agreement will not come quickly.
Starmer told reporters: “We agreed we will keep increasing the pressure on Russia, keep the military aid flowing to Ukraine, and keep tightening restrictions on Russia’s economy to weaken Putin’s war machine and bring him to the table.”
Jolted into action by Trump’s refusal to keep underwriting Europe’s and Ukraine’s security, other Western countries have been forced to step up.
“Our militaries will meet on Thursday this week here in the United Kingdom to put strong and robust plans in place to swing in behind a peace deal and guarantee Ukraine’s future security,” Starmer said.
“President Trump has offered Putin the way forward to a lasting peace. Now we must make this a reality.” (Int’l Monitoring Desk)
