Kiev’s backers reneging on military personnel pledges – Sunday Times

“No one wants to send their troops to die in Ukraine,” a source has told the newspaper, despite previous announcements by the UK and France

Members of the so-called “Coalition of the Willing,” comprised of Kiev’s European backers, will not be sending troops to Ukraine despite previously floating the idea, The Sunday Times has claimed, citing an anonymous source.

Back in March, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that London was prepared to deploy “boots on the ground and planes in the air, together with others.” French President Emmanuel Macron made a similar statement.

The hypothetical contingent would be acting in a “peacekeeping” capacity if and when Kiev and Moscow agree to a ceasefire. However, Germany, Poland, Spain, and Italy have all expressed a reluctance or refused to commit troops for the potential mission.

Russia has strongly opposed the stationing of NATO military personnel in the neighboring country under any pretext.

In an article on Saturday, the Sunday Times predicted that should the upcoming meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump result in a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine, Kiev would likely want to see “international monitors on the ground.”

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However, according to the British newspaper, “it is unlikely that the answer here will be the ‘coalition of the willing’.”
The publication quoted an unnamed UK defense official as acknowledging that “no one wants to send their troops to die in Ukraine.”

Back in May, the Financial Times, citing an anonymous source, reported that the coalition’s plans for a deployment in Ukraine were “dead” now that the US had refused to provide backing.

A little earlier, The Times similarly claimed that the plan was unrealistic due to personnel shortages faced by European militaries.

Last month, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused the European NATO member states of pursuing a “militaristic [and] confrontational” course.

Back in April, Sergey Shoigu, secretary of Russia’s National Security Council and former defense minister, warned that the arrival of NATO troops in Ukraine could lead to a third world war.

The Kremlin has repeatedly described the Ukraine conflict as a proxy war being waged against Russia by the West, with Kiev being used as an expendable battering ram.