Putin can’t veto peacekeepers in Ukraine — UK Foreign Secretary Lammy

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy stated this, as reported by Sky News.

“Putin should simply accept an unconditional ceasefire. That is the plan on the table, let’s get on with it, what are we waiting for?” the diplomat said.

“What we certainly can’t do is give Putin a veto over the security architecture that will govern that peace,” Lammy added.

He reminded that Putin has insisted on the absence of European peacekeepers in Ukraine as part of any peace agreement.

“And of course, that means that there must be a role for those of us in Europe and beyond who want to ensure that Ukraine has the ability to defend itself and to ensure that, as we saw in 2014, Putin is not able to come back for more a few years later,” the UK Foreign Secretary noted.

Peacekeeping forces in Ukraine: what’s known

At the end of January, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that at least 200,000 peacekeepers would be needed to ensure Ukraine’s security after the cessation of hostilities. Later, he clarified that U.S. troops should be included in the peacekeeping forces in Ukraine.

On February 11, The New York Times reported that Europe does not have 200,000 peacekeepers available to send to Ukraine — this number is nearly three times the size of the entire British army. On the same day, Zelenskyy stated that the mission could operate if 100,000–150,000 European troops were deployed.

According to The Associated Press, a group of European countries is secretly developing a plan to send troops to Ukraine. Previously, Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umerov confirmed that international partners were already working on the idea of a peacekeeping mission.

U.S. President Donald Trump supported the deployment of European peacekeeping forces in Ukraine but noted that the U.S. would not participate.

According to the spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Christophe Lemoine, European countries are currently discussing only the possibility of sending their troops to Ukraine, not their numbers.

At the same time, the Finnish government has rejected the possibility of sending peacekeepers to Ukraine. Prime Minister Orpo referred to the fact that Finland cannot do so because it shares a border with Russia.

Meanwhile, the German defense company Rheinmetall has announced its readiness to arm peacekeepers in Ukraine.

On March 16, Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, stated that the Kremlin would perceive the deployment of Western peacekeepers in Ukraine as a declaration of war by NATO.