France is finding allies for the potential deployment of troops to Ukraine among the Baltic countries. This deepens the dispute between Paris and Berlin.
Foreign troops can help Ukraine in demining
On March 8, French Foreign Minister Stéphane Sejournay was in Lithuania, where he met with his Baltic and Ukrainian counterparts to support the idea that foreign troops could eventually help Ukraine in areas such as demining.
It is not for Russia to tell us how we should help Ukraine in the coming months or years. It is not Russia's business to organize how we deploy our actions or set red lines. Therefore, we decide among ourselves.
Stefan Séjournay
Head of the Foreign Ministry of France
Séjournay has repeatedly called demining operations involving foreign troops a possibility, saying it "may mean having some personnel [but] not for war."
The meeting with the participation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Gabrielus Landsbergis and their Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba took place at a time when Ukraine is suffering from a shortage of artillery ammunition, which makes it difficult to stop Russian attacks.
Ukraine did not ask us to send troops. Ukraine is asking us to send ammunition at this time. We do not exclude anything for the coming months, — said the French minister.
Baltic ministers praised France for "outside the box thinking".
Which countries are open to the idea of foreign troops in Ukraine
In February, French President Emmanuel Macron raised the issue that foreign soldiers may have to be sent to Ukraine.
In the immediate aftermath, most European countries — including Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland — said they had no such plans. However, the three Baltic countries are much more open to this idea.
There can be no "buts". We must draw red lines for Russia, not for ourselves. No form of support for Ukraine can be ruled out. We must continue to support Ukraine where it is most needed, said the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Gabrielus Landsbergis.
Warsaw is also changing its position.
The presence of NATO forces in Ukraine is not unthinkable, Foreign Minister Radoslav Sikorskyi said on March 8, adding that he appreciates Macron's initiative, "because it says that [Russian President Volodymyr] Putin is afraid, and not we are afraid of Putin."
Radoslav Sikorskyi
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland
