NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Thursday defended the ongoing plans for possible deployment of European troops in Ukraine following a potential ceasefire with Russia.
Ahead of a meeting of Ukraine’s Western allies in Paris later on Thursday, Russia again rejected the deployment of any NATO troops to Ukraine to monitor a potential peace deal.
“Why are we interested in what Russia thinks about troops in Ukraine?” Rutte said in response at an event organized by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) in Prague.
Ukraine is a sovereign country, he said, and it is not up to Russia to decide on a troop presence.
The so-called Coalition of the Willing is due to discuss how to ensure the security of the country attacked by Russia after a possible end to the war at the meeting in Paris.
The focus is on strengthening the Ukrainian army, but also on political and military commitments in the event of renewed Russian aggression.
Rutte is expected to join the Paris meeting hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer via video-link.
According to military sources, a troop presence by European NATO countries in Ukraine could primarily involve a large-scale training mission. This means that it would not be a peacekeeping force in the traditional sense.
Last week EU foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas said there is broad support among EU countries to train Ukrainian military personnel – also on Ukrainian soil – once a ceasefire is reached with Russia.