Ukraine needs combat units from allied countries, not peacekeepers – Zhovkva
Ukraine needs a serious contribution from European countries in the form of troops ready to fight, not a peacekeeping contingent after any cessation of hostilities with the Russian Federation, said Deputy Head of the President’s Office of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva.
"We do not need a simple presence to demonstrate that Europe is present... We do not need peacekeepers, blue helmets, unarmed, or anything else," Zhovkva said in an interview with AFP on Wednesday on the eve of the Coalition of the Willing summit in Paris.
He noted that Kyiv expects a strong presence of European countries in Ukraine and military personnel who are ready for various scenarios, including missile or drone strikes. "If European countries are serious about their contribution, they should be really serious," said the Deputy Head of the President's Office.
Zhovkva did not say how many European troops Ukraine needs after the war or where they could be deployed, but noted that "we don't need just five or ten thousand."
"The number is not important... What is also important is their readiness to fight, their readiness to defend, their readiness to be equipped, their readiness to understand that Ukraine is an integral part of European security... Every soldier must be ready to participate in a real battle... That's what Ukrainians have been doing for more than three years," the official said.
Zhovkva suggested that European forces could help protect Ukraine's border with Belarus, freeing up Ukrainian troops to deploy in more dangerous regions, adding that "we don't need an international presence somewhere in Lviv."