Europe will not be able to guarantee Ukraine's security: why peace negotiations are under threat

According to The Times, Western government officials claim that European countries will not have sufficient resources or capabilities to support Ukraine in negotiations for a peace settlement of the conflict or to guarantee compliance with the ceasefire regime.

According to the publication, the idea of creating a 'coalition of the willing' with the UK and France, which was supposed to support Ukraine and monitor the ceasefire, has proven ineffective.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer hoped to deploy 64,000 troops, but European defense ministers acknowledged that forming even a contingent of 10,000, as proposed by London, is currently impossible. The Kremlin stated that it would not allow the presence of Western troops in Ukraine, and even if Putin agreed to such a scenario, Europe’s options remain limited.

The Times emphasizes that unfreezing Russian assets could be a way to pressure Moscow in exchange for concessions during negotiations. However, the success of such a strategy will depend on Putin's willingness to negotiate and to abandon further conflict. Earlier, Washington expressed its position on a possible territorial settlement of the conflict in Ukraine. Ukraine may face limitations on European support in negotiations with Russia due to the insufficient resources and capabilities of European countries. Putin threatened not to allow the presence of Western troops on Ukrainian territory, complicating possible pathways to resolve the conflict.