After a “coalition of the willing” gathering in Paris, President Emmanuel Macron insisted that a “reassurance force” of European troops after the war ends was still on the table. But details remained scarce.
Reporting from Paris
President Emmanuel Macron of France vowed on Thursday that a “coalition of the willing” would keep supporting Ukraine in the war against Russia and would help safeguard an eventual peace — including, for some Europeans countries, by sending a “reassurance force” to Ukrainian soil after the conflict ends.
But Mr. Macron, who spoke at the close of a gathering of European leaders in Paris, said the contours of that force were still being ironed out, and details of who was willing to do what were still scarce.
That compounded a sense of murkiness around diplomatic efforts to stop the fighting, which began when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
Even as the leaders met, Russia faced accusations that it was drawing out U.S.-mediated negotiations in Saudi Arabia to gain the upper hand. And it is an open question what role the United States would be willing to play to support a European force stationed in Ukraine.
“We need to accelerate discussions to obtain a cease-fire, we need to accelerate our ability to finance and deliver weapons, and to prepare plans for the Ukrainian army and the reassurance force,” Mr. Macron said at a news conference after the meeting.
But after three hours of discussions, Britain and France were still the only countries committed to the idea. Russia has called it unacceptable.
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