UK and France Plan to Send Troops to the Country should a Ceasefire Accord is Reached

The British and French governments have formalized a declaration of intent concerning the positioning of armed personnel in the nation should a ceasefire be made with Moscow, the British leader, Starmer, has stated.

Subsequent to talks with Kyiv's partners in Paris, he indicated that the allies would "establish defense centers in various parts of Ukraine and build secure facilities for arms and military equipment" to prevent any potential attack.

The coalition members also suggested that the US would play the primary role in overseeing a ceasefire.

Moscow has on multiple occasions cautioned that any external forces in Ukraine would be considered a "legitimate target", but has not yet commented on this latest development.

The Situation and Ongoing War

Moscow's leader Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the start of last year, and Russia presently occupies about 20% of Ukrainian territory.

"This represents an essential component of our pledge to be alongside Ukraine for the duration," stated Starmer.

Heads of state and top officials from the "Coalition of the Willing" participated in the recent discussions.

He stated at a shared media briefing, Starmer further said: "It paves the way for the juridical structure under which allied and coalition forces could operate on the ground in Ukraine, securing Ukraine's airspace and waters, and rebuilding Ukraine's defense capabilities for the years ahead."

The PM added that the UK would be involved in any American-headed verification of a potential cessation of hostilities.

Protection Pledges and Negotiation Stances

Top American diplomat Steve Witkoff remarked that "durable safety pledges and substantial economic promises are critical to a lasting peace" in Ukraine – mentioning a key demand made by the Ukrainian government.

Witkoff said the coalition had "mostly completed" their work on establishing such assurances "in order that the people of Ukraine know that when this war ends, it ends permanently."

Jared Kushner, former American President Donald Trump's advisor, also participated in the negotiations.

Separately, President Macron Emmanuel Macron stated that Ukraine's supporters had made "major progress" at the negotiations.

He said that "strong" safety pledges for Ukraine had been reached in the instance of a possible ceasefire.

Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky stated that a "huge step forward" had been made in the talks, but qualified that he would only deem efforts to be "adequate" if they led to the conclusion of the conflict.

Earlier, the Ukrainian leader suggested a peace deal was "largely prepared". Settling the remaining 10% would "determine the outcome of the agreement, the destiny of Ukraine and Europe".

Remaining Challenges

• Territory and security guarantees have been at the heart of ongoing disputes for negotiators.
• Putin has consistently stated that Ukraine's forces must pull back from the entirety of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region or Russia will take control, refusing any middle ground over how to finish the war.
• Kyiv has thus far ruled out surrendering any territory, but has floated the idea that Ukraine could pull back its forces to an mutually accepted point – but only if Russia does the same.

Moscow presently occupies about 75% of the Donetsk oblast and around 99% of the adjacent Luhansk region. The two regions form the industrial region of Donbas.

The earlier US-led 28-point proposal that was extensively reported to the media last year was viewed by Kyiv and its European allies as being heavily skewed in Moscow's direction.

This led to weeks of high-level discussions – with the involved parties trying to amend the proposal.

The previous month, The Ukrainian government submitted the US an updated proposal – as well as distinct documents detailing possible defense assurances and provisions for Ukraine's rebuilding, Zelensky stated.