Britain and France Will Dispatch Forces to Ukraine in the event that a Peace Deal is Agreed

The London and Paris have inked a memorandum of understanding concerning the positioning of armed personnel in Ukraine if a ceasefire be concluded with Moscow, the UK Prime Minister, Starmer, has declared.

Subsequent to discussions with Ukraine's allies in the French capital, he noted that the allies would "create defense centers across Ukraine and build secure structures for weapons and military equipment" to discourage any subsequent invasion.

The coalition members also proposed that the America would play the primary role in overseeing a ceasefire.

Moscow has on multiple occasions cautioned that any non-Ukrainian military in Ukraine would be considered a "acceptable aim", but has as yet not issued a statement on this new declaration.

Background and Continuing Conflict

The Kremlin's head Vladimir Putin initiated a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, and Russia presently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory.

"This represents an essential component of our pledge to be alongside Ukraine for the foreseeable future," stated the UK Prime Minister.

Heads of state and senior officials from the "Coalition of the Willing" participated in the recent discussions.

Speaking at a joint press conference, the Prime Minister noted: "It creates the pathway for the operational parameters under which British, French, and partner forces could operate on Ukrainian soil, protecting Ukraine's air and maritime domains, and regenerating Ukraine's defense capabilities for the years ahead."

The PM added that the UK would be involved in any American-headed verification of a potential cessation of hostilities.

Defense Assurances and Diplomatic Positions

Senior US negotiator Steve Witkoff remarked that "lasting defense assurances and strong economic promises are vital to a enduring ceasefire" in Ukraine – alluding to a key requirement made by Kyiv.

The negotiator said the partner nations had "mostly completed" their work on agreeing such guarantees "in order that the Ukrainian people know that when this conflict ends, it ends for good."

The former US envoy, ex-President Donald Trump's advisor, also participated in the talks.

At the same time, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that Ukraine's partners had made "significant progress" at the negotiations.

He noted that "robust" safety pledges for the Ukrainian government had been reached in the case of a potential ceasefire.

Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelensky commented that a "huge advance" had been made in the negotiations, but qualified that he would only deem efforts to be "adequate" if they led to the end of the war.

Last week, the Ukrainian leader suggested a settlement was "largely prepared". Agreeing on the outstanding 10% would "decide the outcome of peace, the fate of Ukraine and Europe".

Remaining Challenges

• Land and security guarantees have been at the center of key disagreements for the parties involved.
• Moscow has repeatedly warned that Ukrainian troops must pull back from the entirety of Ukraine's eastern Donbas or Russia will occupy it, refusing any compromise over how to conclude the war.
• The Ukrainian President has to date rejected surrendering any land, but has suggested that Ukraine could pull back its troops to an agreed point – but only if Russia does the same.

Russia currently occupies about 75% of the Donetsk oblast and some 99% of the bordering Luhansk region. The pair of oblasts form the area of Donbas.

The original US-led 28-point framework that was extensively reported to the media last year was seen by Kyiv and its partners in Europe as being disproportionately favorable in Moscow's direction.

This sparked a period of high-level negotiations – with all sides trying to amend the draft.

The previous month, Ukraine sent the US an updated framework – as well as distinct documents describing potential security guarantees and provisions for Ukraine's reconstruction, the President said.