European leaders wrangle over peacekeeping forces at emergency Ukraine summit

by dpa | 18.Feb 2025 | Europe in brief

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The drastic change in US policy on Ukraine puts Europe in a complicated situation. The French president Emmanuel Macron organises an emergency summit. But the Europeans do not present a united front.

17.02.2025, France, Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron welcomes the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, as she arrives for an informal meeting of the heads of state and government of the main EU countries and the United Kingdom at the Elysee Palace in Paris Photo: Aurelien Morissard/AP/dpa
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Paris (dpa) – An emergency summit by European leaders to discuss US plans to end the war in Ukraine failed to yield any immediate results, with European leaders split on the issue of sending peacekeeping troops to monitor a potential ceasefire in Ukraine.

Speaking after the meeting convened by French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz again rejected the peacekeeper debate as “completely premature.”

Scholz said he was “irritated” by discussions revolving around possible outcomes of peace talks that have not yet taken place, without involving the Ukrainians. “To put it bluntly, this is highly inappropriate,” the German leader said.

Ahead of the informal talks attended by the leaders of France, Germany, Britain, Italy, Poland, Spain, the Netherlands and Denmark, alongside senior EU and NATO figures, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was “ready and willing” to send troops to Ukraine as part of a ceasefire deal.

France is also said to have expressed its willingness to deploy troops some time ago. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot spoke of very concrete talks “at various levels” regarding the deployment of troops, particularly from France, Britain and Poland – the “three major armies” in Europe.

Such a peacekeeping force would be intended to ensure a future ceasefire and a “lasting peace” in Ukraine, he told the LCI channel.

Following the meeting, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen posted identical messages on X:

Europe pushed to the sidelines

The main goal of Monday’s summit was to agree on a common strategy for dealing with US President Donald Trump, who aims to force Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table, while tasking Europeans with securing a peace deal.

To this end, a request was recently received in Berlin and other European capitals to report possible contributions to security guarantees for Ukraine. (18 February)

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