Russia has rejected the idea of NATO countries sending peacekeeping troops to Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire, Reuters reports. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova stressed that such a move would lead to an uncontrolled escalation of the conflict, News.bg reports.
She referred to recent statements by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius regarding the possibility of their countries sending peacekeeping forces to Ukraine.
Starmer noted that Britain had discussed the idea of peacekeeping forces with other allies. Pistorius, in turn, pointed out that Germany, as NATO's largest partner in Europe, "will obviously play a role" and the issue will be discussed in due course.
Russia, for its part, has announced that it is open to dialogue with US President Donald Trump, who has vowed to bring the war to a swift end.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that at least 200,000 European peacekeepers would be needed to prevent a new Russian attack after any ceasefire agreement.