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French President Emmanuel Macron has said that a so-called reassurance force of European troops in post-conflict Ukraine would take shape over the next month, with France and Britain sending military officials to Kyiv soon.
“I think that within three to four weeks, we’ll have those two questions settled: the structure of the Ukrainian army, the reassurance forces, and a fairly precise action plan with the needs, as well as the contributors,” Macron said on Thursday after hosting Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and more than 30 countries, including Britain, that are part of a “coalition of the willing” backing Kyiv.
France and the UK have been coordinating efforts for a pan-European deployment to Ukraine to secure the most sensitive sites such as ports and official buildings — in a bid to act as a deterrent against any future Russian aggression.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said that London had hosted “over 200 military planners from 30 countries” this week, and that countries were “coming forward with contributions on everything from logistics and command and control, to deployments on land, air and sea”.
“This is Europe mobilising together behind the peace process on a scale we haven’t seen for decades,” he said.
But while some countries such as Denmark and the Baltic states have agreed to participate, many others are reluctant to openly commit troops and military equipment to such a force.
French and British military officials “will go there so the Ukrainians can tell us exactly what they need and what sites they want them to be deployed”, said Macron. “Nothing is off the table, so maritime, air and ground” capabilities are being mulled, while the Ukrainians would also say how many soldiers they would need.
Zelenskyy urged his European allies to move swiftly: “We need one clear plan that we all agree on and start implementing.
“It’s obvious that the strength and size of the Ukrainian army will always be a key guarantee of our security,” he added. “We need to build everything around that — our defence forces, their equipment, their technology, their effectiveness — this is the foundation.”
The Paris meeting comes amid nervousness across the bloc regarding a Black Sea ceasefire brokered by the US, which Russia has yet to comply with.
“Participants remain doubtful as to whether Russia will implement the announced partial ceasefire,” said an EU official after the talks.
Echoing comments from EU leaders, Macron and Zelenskyy said on Wednesday that it was too early to drop the sanctions imposed on Russian lenders. They also suggested Moscow was not negotiating in good faith, although they were careful not to criticise the efforts led by US President Donald Trump.
A US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire, while agreed by Kyiv after the US briefly suspended military aid and intelligence sharing, was rejected by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Instead, Moscow has pledged to pause attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure for 30 days and to cease hostilities in the Black Sea — but only after the west lifts sanctions on certain Russian lenders.
Macron said on Wednesday that the European force would respond if Russia attacked it. “If there was again a generalised aggression on Ukrainian soil, these armies would, in fact, be under attack and then it’s our usual framework of engagement . . . Our soldiers, when they are engaged and deployed, are there to react . . . and, if they are in a conflict situation, to respond to it.”
But several leaders, including Italy’s Giorgia Meloni, have balked at deploying troops to Ukraine, deeming the discussion as “premature”. Countries on the eastern flank are also wary of committing soldiers unless they can secure protection from other Nato deployments on their territory.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at this time it was “not even certain whether there will be a debate, . . . what kind it will be, whether it will be about international troops”. That’s why “we are concentrating on what is imminent now”, he said.
He reiterated that US security guarantees were “crucial”, so that Washington feels “jointly responsible with us for Ukraine’s security and for peace and security in Europe”.
Additional reporting by Anne-Sylvaine Chassany in Berlin and Lucy Fisher in London
