The idea that Allied countries station troops on Ukrainian soil, which was first proposed by the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, is gaining ground in the invaded country, although skepticism prevails over whether this would make a significant contribution to ending the conflict with Russia.
Until Ukraine does not join NATOthe rest of the options for security guarantees, including the presence of foreign troops, are on the table, said Oleksandr Merezhko, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Ukrainian Parliament.
However, he is skeptical about the possibility that it could become a long-term solution.
“We cannot give up joining NATO, since our experience shows that it is the only truly reliable guarantee“he stressed.
In search of security
The issue of security guarantees remains a central issue in Ukraine, now that the recovery of the territories under Russian occupation seems increasingly less plausible in the near futureas Russia continues to advance inch by inch on the battlefield and the allies hesitate to increase their military support.
“We lack weapons, “We lack the status we are talking about, that is, an invitation to NATO, and clear guarantees that could ensure that we are sure that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin will not return in two or three years,” said Andri Yermak, head of the from the Ukrainian presidential office this Thursday to the Suspilne network.
Yermak argued that your country’s position is still not strong enough for peace talks with Russia.
While kyiv continues to insist that only membership in NATO is a long-term solution for its security, Ukraine will “study and work” with the idea of hosting foreign troops before the country joins the alliance, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday.
“Ukraine is ready to talk about “anything that works”declared to the digital Political Deputy Prime Minister Olga Stefanishina, in charge of Euro-Atlantic integration.
However, as long as Russia continues bombing Ukraine it is too early to talk about peace missionssaid the head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas.
Few options
According to Oleksy Melnik, an international security expert at the Razumkov think tank in kyiv, foreign troops could help Ukraine. just by being parked right now in the safest areas of the countrysuch as the western regions, or on the border with Russia, thus freeing Ukrainian troops to stabilize the front.
However, in the 10 months since the idea was launched by Macronno “practical steps” have been taken, Mélnik noted.
kyiv has never raised the idea, at least publiclyand Zelensky explained last spring that it would negatively affect the support his country has received.
During potential ceasefire negotiations, Russia would probably oppose the presence of Polish, French or British troops on Ukrainian soilpolitical analyst Volodymir Fesenko told the RBC network.
The presence of “neutral” peacekeepers, that Russia might propose, inspires little confidence in Ukraine, aware of the inability of the blue helmets to stop the violence in Bosnia in the 1990s or that of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to enforce the ceasefire in Donetsk after the Minsk Agreements.
“Given how Russia has repeatedly ignored international law, nothing will stop them from ignoring these troopsespecially if they are few and their mandate is not completely clear,” also stressed the Ukrainian officer and military blogger known as ‘Alex’.
Therefore, these troops could stay on the sidelinesor escape, if Russia launches a new invasion in the future, he noted on Telegram.
Ukraine has few options beyond continuing to work with a “coalition of the willing”which could include the Baltic and Nordic states, as well as Poland and the United Kingdom and potentially the Netherlands and Germany, in the supply of weapons and the possibility of sending soldiers, Fesenko noted.
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