Russia on Thursday rejected the idea of NATO countries sending troops of peacekeepers 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.
At a press briefing, she referred to recent statements by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius about the possibility that NATO countries might contribute troops of peacekeepers in Ukraine.
NATO Peacekeepers
Pistorius said in a Jan. 18 newspaper interview that Germany, as the largest NATO partner in Europe, would “obviously have a role to play”, and the matter would be discussed in due course.
Starmer said on Jan. 16 that Britain had been discussing the idea of a peacekeeping force with other allies, and that “we will play our full part”.
Russia says it is open to a dialogue with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has said he intends to bring a swift end to the war.
Zelenskyy’s Concerns
Ukraine ‘s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who is seeking a meeting with Trump, said on Tuesday that at least 200,000 European or NATO peacekeepers would be needed to prevent a new attack by Russia after any ceasefire deal.
The Ukrainian leader, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland a day after Trump returned to power following months of promises to end the war in Ukraine quickly, also urged European leaders to do more to defend the continent.
The prospect of a rapid settlement has focused minds in Kyiv and Europe on the urgent need for security guarantees to prevent any future Russian attack, with the idea of a peacekeeping contingent force circulating.
“From all the Europeans? 200,000, it’s a minimum. It’s a minimum, otherwise, it’s nothing,” Zelenskyy said when asked about the idea of a peacekeeping mission on an interview panel after delivering his speech.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine would not agree to Russian demands that it drastically reduce the size of its military, predicting that Russian President Vladimir Putin would demand Ukraine cut its armed forces to a fifth of their size.
(with inputs from Reuters)
