EU comments on Macron's idea of sending troops to Ukraine

Tuesday, 27 February 2024

Today, the EU has reached an agreement on providing Ukraine with everything it needs to counter Russian aggression; any other decisions are up to the member states.

"The agreed EU position is that we need to do whatever it takes to help Ukraine to win its rightful war of defence against an illegal aggression. The member states agreed already a long time ago and continue to refer to or renew this commitment to support Ukraine in many different ways: financial, humanitarian, political, diplomatic, restriction measures and military," European Commission foreign policy spokesman Peter Stano said, commenting on a statement by French President Emmanuel Macron.

He recalled that military assistance is partially coordinated at the EU level through reimbursement from the European Peace Facility for member states' supply of weapons to Ukraine. However, EU member states are responsible for the vast majority of military support.

"The member states decide what is the best way they can support Ukraine based on its needs. So it’s a decision of the member states. There is no decision at the EU level about any kind of sending of troops or ground forces to Ukraine to fight. At this stage, the consensus in the European Union, at the EU level is, to give Ukraine whatever it takes for how long it takes," he added.

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French President Emmanuel Macron has not ruled out the possibility of sending Western troops to Ukraine in the future after a meeting in Paris on Monday, emphasising that there is currently no consensus among allies.

After Macron's statement, Czechia, Poland, and Sweden stated that they are not considering the idea of sending their troops to Ukraine.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that the alliance has no plans to send troops to Ukraine.

Dmitry Peskov, the spokesperson for the Russian president, stated that the presence of NATO troops on the territory of Ukraine would lead to a direct conflict between the Alliance and the Russian Federation, escalating the situation.

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