Russia on Thursday rejected the idea that NATO countries would send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire in the war with Russia, saying such a move would threaten to cause an “uncontrollable escalation.”
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the idea was totally unacceptable to Russia.
In a press conference, he referred to recent statements by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius about the possibility of their countries contributing troops to a peacekeeping force in Ukraine.
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NATO seriously considers sending troops in case of a ceasefire
Pistorius said in a newspaper interview on January 18 that Germany, as NATO’s largest partner in Europe, would “obviously have a role to play” and that the matter would be discussed in due course.
Starmer, for his part, said on January 16 that Britain had been discussing the idea of a peacekeeping force with other allies and that “we will play our part fully.”
Russia says it is open to dialogue with US President Donald Trump, who has said he intends to quickly end the war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who wants to meet with Trump, said on Tuesday that at least 200,000 European troops would be needed to prevent a new Russian attack following any ceasefire agreement.
With information from Reuters
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