France, the UK and Ukraine signed a declaration of intent on Tuesday for deploying a multinational force in Ukraine backed for the first time by the US as part of a potential peace deal.
Zelensky, European leaders, US envoys and other allies met in Paris on Jan. 6 to discuss finalizing “robust” security guarantees for Kyiv.
The joint declaration inked by Britain’s Sir Keir Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron and President Volodymyr Zelensky will see Britain and France setting up “military hubs” across Ukraine to facilitate boots on the ground if needed and to assist with post-war reconstruction.
The US for the first time has offered “to support the force in case of attack,” in a development that has been described by European leaders as game-changing.
In a post on X after the meeting, Zelensky said that allies had made detailed plans on “force deployment, numbers, specific types of weapons, and the components of the Armed Forces required and able to operate effectively.”
“We already have these necessary details,” he added, without disclosing them.
However, Macron said on Tuesday that “several thousand” French soldiers could be deployed to Ukraine to maintain peace after the signing of a ceasefire agreement with Russia.
Germany, which has signaled strong support from Ukraine but has been more cautious about putting boots on the ground, said that it could deploy its forces to a neighboring NATO territory.
Meanwhile, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni ruled out Italian troops on the ground outright once again.
“This is a vital part of our commitment to stand with Ukraine for the long-term. It paves the way for the legal framework under which British, French and partner forces could operate on Ukrainian soil, securing Ukraine’s skies and seas and regenerating Ukraine’s armed forces for the future,” Starmer said at the joint press conference in Paris.
”Alongside our plans for a coordination cell, post-ceasefire the UK and France will also establish “military hubs” across Ukraine to enable the deployment and build protected facilities for weapons and military equipment to support Ukraine’s defensive needs.”
“Today, we’ve made considerable progress, as reflected in the Paris Declaration providing strong guarantees for lasting peace,” Macron said.
“It’s important that today the coalition has substantive documents. These are not just words. There is concrete content: a joint declaration by all the coalition countries and a trilateral declaration by France, Britain, and Ukraine,” Zelensky said.
Moscow has previously rejected the presence of NATO troops or those associated with the Coalition of the Willing in Ukraine, including as part of a security guarantee, and has warned that it would regard any European troops as a “legitimate target.”
Washington has also said that it will lead a high-tech operation to monitor the ceasefire line agreed upon in any potential deal between Russia and Ukraine in order to ascertain blame for any violations which may take place. Drones, satellites and sensors will be used for the monitoring.
Speaking after the discussions, US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff said that security guarantees were now “largely finished,” while US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner hailed the decisions as a “very, very big milestone.”
Zelensky said on Tuesday that the most significant issue that has still not been resolved by the allies is “the territorial question,” in reference to Russia’s maximalist demands that Kyiv surrender its eastern Donbas region.