UK and France Plan to Send Troops to the Country in the event that a Peace Deal is Reached

The British and French governments have signed a memorandum of understanding concerning the positioning of military forces in Ukraine in the event a peace deal be struck with Russia, the UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, has announced.

Following talks with allied nations in the French capital, he indicated that the UK and France would "establish defense centers in various parts of Ukraine and construct secure installations for military hardware and equipment" to deter any potential attack.

The allied nations also put forward that the America would assume leadership in verifying a ceasefire.

Russia has consistently stated that any non-Ukrainian military in Ukraine would be considered a "valid objective", but has as yet not issued a statement on this new development.

Context and Ongoing War

Moscow's leader Vladimir Putin began a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, and Moscow currently occupies approximately 20% of Ukrainian territory.

"This constitutes a crucial element of our vow to support Ukraine for the duration," commented the British leader.

Heads of state and top officials from the "Partner Group" participated in the recent discussions.

He stated at a shared media briefing, Starmer noted: "It paves the way for the juridical structure under which allied and coalition forces could work on the ground in Ukraine, protecting Ukraine's air and maritime domains, and regenerating Ukraine's armed forces for the time to come."

The UK prime minister went on to say that Britain would participate in any Washington-directed monitoring of a prospective truce.

Defense Assurances and Negotiation Stances

Top US negotiator Steve Witkoff stated that "long-term safety pledges and strong reconstruction vows are vital to a lasting peace" in Ukraine – referring to a key demand made by Ukraine.

He indicated the allies had "substantially agreed on" their work on establishing such guarantees "so that the people of Ukraine know that when this conflict ends, it ends forever."

The former US envoy, former American President Donald Trump's special envoy, also was involved in the talks.

Separately, France's leader Emmanuel Macron stated that Ukraine's supporters had made "major headway" at the meeting.

He noted that "strong" security guarantees for Kyiv had been settled upon in the instance of a prospective truce.

Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky said that a "major development" had been made in the talks, but added that he would only consider efforts to be "adequate" if they led to the conclusion of the fighting.

Recently, he suggested a peace deal was "largely prepared". Finalizing the remaining 10% would "decide the future of peace, the future of Ukraine and Europe".

Remaining Challenges

• Land and security guarantees have been at the center of unresolved issues for diplomats.
• Moscow has consistently stated that Ukrainian troops must retreat from the entirety of Ukraine's eastern Donbas or Russia will take control, rejecting any compromise over how to finish the war.
• Zelensky has thus far rejected giving up any land, but has proposed that Ukraine could move its troops to an mutually accepted point – but only if Russia follows suit.

Moscow presently controls about 75% of the Donetsk region and around 99% of the neighbouring Luhansk. The areas form the heartland of Donbas.

The original US-led multi-point peace plan that was circulated to the media last year was seen by Kyiv and its partners in Europe as being heavily skewed in Russia's direction.

This sparked a period of high-level negotiations – with Ukraine, the US and European leaders trying to amend the draft.

The previous month, Kyiv presented the US an revised framework – as well as separate documents outlining prospective defense assurances and arrangements for Ukraine's reconstruction, he added.