France and the UK have recently proposed the establishment of a “Coalition of the Willing” during a summit in London, aimed at implementing any peace agreement in Ukraine. The plan includes deploying ground forces along with air support. However, European countries have varying stances on whether to participate and how to participate.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the alliance as a group of countries “ready to work with other nations, deploying troops on the ground and aircraft in the air to support Ukraine.”
Currently, the specific tasks of these troops and the number needed remain unclear. Experts estimate that tens of thousands of soldiers would be required to provide credible peacekeeping assurances.
Professor Sven Biscop from the Egmont Institute in Brussels suggested that a legion of 50,000 troops would send a strong message to Russia that “we are very serious about this.”
France and the UK are leading the effort to push this plan forward, with intentions to deploy ground forces as a guarantee following a peace agreement. Some countries have expressed support but are hesitant about specific actions.
Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa expressed full support for the Franco-British plan but believes it is premature to discuss deploying troops now, as it should await a decision from the National Defense Council meeting on March 17.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof committed to participating in military planning but has not made concrete promises yet.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares stated that his country has no issues with deploying troops overseas, but at present, the focus remains on politics and diplomacy. Domestic polls show that 81.7% of Spaniards support sending peacekeeping forces.
Ireland stated willingness to discuss but believes it is too early to deploy peacekeeping forces as peace negotiations have not reached that stage.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni questioned the effectiveness of European troop deployment and suggested that providing security guarantees through NATO’s Article 5 (collective defense clause) would be more feasible. However, this proposal faces challenges as Ukraine is not a NATO member.
Despite being one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters since the Russia-Ukraine war, Poland remains steadfastly opposed to sending any troops to Ukraine.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk clearly opposes sending troops, emphasizing that Poland has welcomed nearly 2 million Ukrainian refugees and is burdened, only willing to provide logistical and political support.
Hungary and Slovakia have critical attitudes towards EU military support for Ukraine and are the most in favor of engaging in dialogue with Russia to end the war.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán criticized European leaders for “prolonging the war instead of seeking peace.”
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico questioned the strategy of “seeking peace through strength,” labeling it as an excuse to prolong the war.
(Note: This article is a compilation of reports from a European news channel.)