French President Emmanuel Macron is set to visit Poland on 12 December, to discuss a potential European peacekeeping mission, according to the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita.
Discussions among European allies about deploying troops to Ukraine were notably revived following the US presidential election in November 2024, particularly after French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal in February 2024.
Ukraine has been urging its allies to consider deploying foreign troops since early February 2024, when President Volodymyr Zelenskyy first floated the idea
Camille Gran, former deputy secretary-general of NATO, said that Macron has signaled to President-elect Donald Trump that Europe is not only unwilling to be excluded from US-Russia negotiations but is also prepared to financially contribute and “take risks associated with protecting Ukrainian sovereignty.”
The core of the French proposal involves a peacekeeping mission that would guarantee the Kremlin does not violate a potential ceasefire, the publication reports.
Poland’s growing military potential and geographical position make it a critical element of this plan, Gran said.
According to Gran, the more countries involved in the peacekeeping mission, the less likely Russia would be to launch a new attack on Ukraine.
Following a support conference for Ukraine in Paris on 26 February, Macron had previously said that Western allies might create a coalition to provide long-range weapons to Ukrainian forces, and not rule out potential military deployment.
However, several NATO countries, including Poland, the United States, Germany, Czech Republic, Canada, and the United Kingdom, have publicly rejected the idea of sending troops to Ukraine.
Le Monde reported that discussions about troop deployment resumed in November 2024 after Trump’s election victory.
A British military source indicated ongoing discussions between the UK and France about defense cooperation, particularly to create a core group of allies focused on Ukraine and broader European security.
Radio Liberty, citing an anonymous high-ranking NATO representative, reported on 3 December that France and the United Kingdom are exploring options to guarantee Ukraine’s security in potential peace negotiations with Russia, including stationing troops along the demarcation line to monitor ceasefire compliance.
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