The United Kingdom and France Plan to Send Troops to Ukraine should a Ceasefire Accord is Agreed

The London and Paris have formalized a declaration of intent concerning the positioning of armed personnel in Ukraine if a peace agreement be struck with Moscow, the British leader, Starmer, has stated.

Subsequent to talks with Kyiv's partners in the French capital, he said that the allies would "establish operational bases across Ukraine and erect fortified structures for military hardware and equipment" to prevent any subsequent attack.

The coalition members also proposed that the United States would take the lead in monitoring a truce.

Russia has repeatedly cautioned that any non-Ukrainian military in Ukraine would be considered a "legitimate target", but has not yet commented on this new announcement.

Context and Continuing Conflict

Moscow's leader Vladimir Putin initiated a major offensive of Ukraine in February 2022, and Russia presently holds approximately 20% of Ukraine's sovereign soil.

"This represents an essential component of our commitment to support Ukraine for the foreseeable future," stated the UK Prime Minister.

Top officials and high-ranking officials from the "Partner Group" took part in the Paris negotiations.

Speaking at a shared media briefing, Starmer added: "It creates the pathway for the juridical structure under which allied and coalition forces could function on the ground in Ukraine, securing Ukraine's air and maritime domains, and rebuilding Ukraine's defense capabilities for the years ahead."

The UK prime minister also stated that Britain would be involved in any US-led confirmation of a possible cessation of hostilities.

Security Guarantees and Negotiation Stances

Lead US negotiator Steve Witkoff said that "durable security guarantees and strong prosperity commitments are vital to a lasting peace" in Ukraine – alluding to a major demand made by Ukraine.

The negotiator said the coalition had "substantially agreed on" their work on finalizing such guarantees "in order that the citizens of Ukraine know that when this hostilities ends, it ends forever."

The former US envoy, ex-President Donald Trump's special envoy, also participated in the negotiations.

Meanwhile, French President Emmanuel Macron said that Ukraine's allies had made "significant headway" at the meeting.

He said that "robust" defense assurances for Ukraine had been settled upon in the case of a prospective truce.

Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky said that a "major advance" had been made in Paris, but qualified that he would only deem efforts to be "adequate" if they led to the cessation of the conflict.

Earlier, Zelensky indicated a peace deal was "largely prepared". Settling the outstanding 10% would "determine the outcome of peace, the fate of Ukraine and Europe".

Remaining Challenges

• Territory and defense assurances have been at the forefront of unresolved issues for diplomats.
• Putin has often said that Kyiv's military must pull back from all of Ukraine's eastern Donbas or Russia will seize it, rejecting any concession over how to conclude the war.
• Kyiv has to date excluded surrendering any land, but has suggested that Ukraine could withdraw its forces to an agreed point – but only if Russia follows suit.

Russian forces currently controls about 75% of the Donetsk oblast and around 99% of the neighbouring Luhansk. The pair of oblasts form the heartland of the Donbas.

The earlier US-led multi-point proposal that was extensively reported to the media last year was perceived by Kyiv and its European allies as being heavily skewed in Moscow's favor.

This led to weeks of focused discussions – with Ukraine, the US and European leaders trying to adjust the proposal.

Recently, Kyiv sent the US an new 20-point plan – as well as distinct documents describing possible security guarantees and plans for Ukraine's rebuilding, he added.