US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has stated that the US leadership is not in favour of sending American troops to Ukraine.

Asked in an interview with LCI published by the US State Department press service whether the US had ruled out sending troops to Ukraine, Blinken responded in the affirmative.

The Secretary of State was also asked whether individual countries’ decisions on potentially sending troops to Ukraine would require a NATO consensus, to which he replied: "Again, I stay away from making hypotheses for the future."

"Our policy is clear. President Biden’s policy is clear. There will be no American troops on Ukrainian soil," he stressed.

When asked why the US opposes such a decision, Blinken stated that it would bring the country "closer to a direct conflict with Russia, which we want to avoid".

"It’s not in our interest and it’s not in the interest of the Allies," he emphasised. 

French President Emmanuel Macron stated in March that sending Western troops to Ukraine "should not be ruled out". Later, he added that his remarks, which caused a stir, were carefully thought through.

Subsequently, commenting on the idea he raised, Macron stressed that if such a scenario were to materialise, French forces would not go on the offensive against Russia.