PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that sending Western troops to Ukraine in the future is not “ruled out” after the issue was discussed at a meeting of European leaders as Russia's large-scale invasion increases a catastrophe will be the third year.
The French leader told the meeting of 20 European heads of state and other Western officials in Paris that “we will do everything necessary to ensure that Russia cannot win the war.”
“Today there is no consensus on officially sending troops to the site. But as far as dynamics are concerned, nothing can be ruled out,” Macron said in a press conference.
The meeting was attended by Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Polish President Andrzej Duda, as well as leaders from the Baltic states.
Macron declined to give details about which countries were considering sending troops, saying he preferred to maintain some “strategic ambiguity.”
Macron previously called on European leaders to ensure the continent's “collective security” by providing unwavering support to Ukraine in the face of tougher Russian offensives on the battlefield in recent months.
“Especially in the last few months we have seen that Russia has become tougher,” Macron said. “We also know that Russia is preparing new attacks, especially to shock Ukrainian public opinion.”
Macron cited the need to strengthen security to deter future Russian attacks on other countries. Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, as well as the much larger Poland, are considered possible targets of future Russian expansionism. All four countries are staunch supporters of Ukraine.
Estonia's foreign minister said earlier this month that NATO has about three to four years to strengthen its defenses.
In a video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged leaders gathered in Paris to “ensure that Putin cannot destroy our achievements and expand his aggression to other nations.”
The United States was represented at the Paris meeting by its top diplomat for Europe, James O'Brien, and the United Kingdom by Foreign Secretary David Cameron.
European nations fear the U.S. will scale back support as aid to Kiev wavers in Congress. They also have concerns that former US President Donald Trump could return to the White House and change the course of US policy on the continent.
The Paris conference comes after France, Germany and the United Kingdom recently signed 10-year bilateral agreements with Ukraine, sending a strong signal of long-term support as Kiev works to bolster Western support.
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Associated Press writer John Leicester contributed to this report.
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Follow AP's coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine