RT-Engels: 30-04-2025,
Raising even a third of the 64,000 personnel proposed by the UK has reportedly been deemed unrealistic
European NATO members are struggling to assemble a ground force for Ukraine to keep an eye on a prospective ceasefire between Moscow and Kiev, the Times reported on Tuesday. The paper’s sources have indicated that even a collective deployment of 25,000 troops would be difficult due to manpower shortages and funding constraints.
A group of mostly European nations – which has been dubbed the “coalition of the willing” – has for months been seeking to muster a force to be deployed to Ukraine, purportedly in a post-conflict peacekeeping role. Russia, however, has opposed a foreign troop deployment in Ukraine under any pretext, warning they would be considered legitimate targets and that such a move could only escalate the conflict.
As part of debates on the foreign troop deployment, British Chief of the Defense Staff Admiral Sir Tony Radakin had reportedly proposed that Kiev’s backers in Europe send a 64,000-strong force to the country, with the UK willing to contribute up to 10,000 personnel.
However, his European counterparts are said to have “thrashed” this proposal, with some officials stating that 25,000 troops would “be a push for a joint effort.”
While France has indicated a willingness to match the UK’s contribution, offering to send between 5,000 and 10,000 troops, the same cannot be said of other EU members,