Britain and France Plan to Send Troops to the Country if a Peace Agreement is Agreed

The UK and France have signed a declaration of intent concerning the positioning of military forces in the nation should a peace agreement be concluded with Russia, the British leader, Sir Keir Starmer, has stated.

Subsequent to negotiations with Ukraine's allies in Paris, he said that the UK and France would "set up military hubs in various parts of Ukraine and build protected structures for military hardware and defense matériel" to discourage any potential incursion.

The partner countries also put forward that the United States would take the lead in overseeing a halt in hostilities.

Moscow has consistently stated that any external forces in Ukraine would be considered a "legitimate target", but has so far not issued a statement on this new development.

Context and Continuing Hostilities

Moscow's leader Vladimir Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the start of last year, and Russia at this time holds about 20% of Ukrainian territory.

"This is a vital part of our commitment to stand with Ukraine for the duration," commented Starmer.

Top officials and senior officials from the "Partner Group" were involved in the recent discussions.

Addressing reporters at a joint press conference, he noted: "It creates the pathway for the operational parameters under which British, French, and partner forces could work on Ukrainian soil, protecting Ukraine's airspace and waters, and restoring Ukraine's defense capabilities for the time to come."

The UK prime minister went on to say that London would participate in any American-headed confirmation of a prospective cessation of hostilities.

Defense Assurances and Diplomatic Positions

Senior American diplomat Steve Witkoff said that "lasting security guarantees and strong reconstruction vows are vital to a lasting peace" in Ukraine – mentioning a major requirement made by Ukraine.

Witkoff indicated the partner nations had "largely finished" their work on establishing such guarantees "to ensure the citizens of Ukraine know that when this conflict ends, it ends for good."

Donald Trump's son-in-law, ex-President Donald Trump's representative, also participated in the discussions.

At the same time, France's leader Emmanuel Macron said that Ukraine's allies had made "major headway" at the meeting.

He said that "strong" security guarantees for Ukraine had been agreed in the case of a potential truce.

Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky stated that a "significant advance" had been made in the negotiations, but cautioned that he would only view efforts to be "enough" if they resulted in the cessation of the conflict.

Earlier, he said a settlement was "90% ready". Finalizing the last 10% would "decide the future of peace, the future of Ukraine and Europe".

Unresolved Issues

• Territory and security guarantees have been at the center of ongoing disputes for diplomats.
• The Russian President has often said that Ukrainian troops must pull back from all of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region or Russia will take control, dismissing any middle ground over how to finish the war.
• Kyiv has so far ruled out ceding any land, but has proposed that Ukraine could pull back its forces to an agreed point – but only if Russia reciprocates.

Russian forces presently occupies about 75% of the Donetsk region and some 99% of the neighbouring Luhansk region. The areas form the heartland of Donbas.

The earlier US-led 28-point framework that was circulated to the media last year was seen by Kyiv and its partners in Europe as being disproportionately favorable in Russia's direction.

This sparked a period of focused discussions – with all sides trying to adjust the proposal.

The previous month, The Ukrainian government presented the US an updated proposal – as well as separate documents outlining potential defense assurances and arrangements for Ukraine's rebuilding, he said.