Ukraine may need hundreds of thousands of European soldiers to deter Russia in future – Lithuanian foreign minister

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys believes that after the war in Ukraine ends, it may be necessary to send hundreds of thousands of European soldiers to prevent new Russian aggression.

According to Delfi, Budrys said that even if talks between Russia and Ukraine take place, tough decisions must be made to prevent future Russian aggression, one of which is sending troops from European countries.

"We know the numbers needed to deter Russia. We are talking about hundreds of thousands of soldiers," Budrys said.

He also described it as an achievement that European countries are finally discussing this openly.

Speaking about a potential peace or ceasefire, Budrys noted that he does not believe Russia would follow any agreement.

"I don’t believe Russia will follow an agreement because I haven’t seen any peace agreement they’ve respected. They will find reasons to claim that something is wrong. Ultimately, this war resumed in 2022 because Russia violated the second Minsk agreement," he emphasised.

This public discussion was picked up by UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who stated that he is ready to send UK troops to Ukraine for peacekeeping duties.

Meanwhile, reports from media outlets stated that European states that support the idea of sending their military to Ukraine to monitor a potential "ceasefire" could send a total of 25,000 to 30,000 troops.