President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky discussed with French President Emmanuel Macron the issue of the possible involvement of foreign peacekeepers in Ukraine.
Zelensky told reporters about this after a series of meetings that lasted until late in the evening, reports a Babel correspondent.
Zelensky said that some Western leaders support the idea of sending a European Union peacekeeping mission to Ukraine. Discussions are currently underway, including on how to implement this initiative.
"Regarding peacekeepers, we discussed with Emmanuel his long-standing idea. We support the idea of strengthening Ukraine. The question is in the details, and we are discussing these details. I perceive positively that Emmanuel has already had contacts with some leaders. And I see that there is already a positive response from some leaders regarding this," Zelensky noted.
The president said he met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and European leaders on Wednesday. One of the most important topics they discussed was energy protection: “Winter, energy, it needs to be protected. I [Ukraine] need 19 air defense systems to protect the distribution stations.”
Answering the question about what position Ukraine would consider the strongest in possible negotiations with Russia, Zelensky noted that everything is spelled out in the Victory Plan, which Ukraine handed over to the US and European leaders. This concerns both security guarantees and economic support for the country.
"By the way, we suggested to our partners to supplement our plan [for victory], especially from the point of view of sanctions policy. Here we would like to hear their proposals," the president noted. According to Babel, the EU is already preparing the 16th package of sanctions.
Zelensky also added that Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni promised to soon deliver the next support package for Ukraine.
What preceded
In February 2024, at a meeting of European leaders in Paris, Macron stated that the sending of NATO troops to Ukraine should not be ruled out in the future.
This statement caused lively discussion. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the leaders of the Alliance countries stated that such a decision had not been made, while Russia stated that such a step would be a declaration of war. Some NATO members supported Macron. Finland and the Baltic countries called on the West not to reject the idea of deploying troops in Ukraine in the event of a critical situation.
After that, former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said that by sending NATO troops to Ukraine, Macron meant training. Kuleba noted that Ukraine never asked the allies to send troops.
Now, as Reuters writes, Europe is discussing sending troops to Ukraine if there is a ceasefire agreement with Russia. The bulk of the forces in Ukraine could be formed by France, Germany, Italy, Poland and the United Kingdom. Negotiations are still at an early stage, and the allies have differences.
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