The future mission in Ukraine may have a different format – from monitoring to deterrence

The head of the EU foreign policy service, Kaia Kallas, commented on the idea of ​​creating an international mission in Ukraine, emphasizing that the format of such an initiative is still being discussed and could vary from monitoring to peacekeeping, the correspondent reports. Radio Liberty.

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"The discussion is whether it's a monitoring mission, whether it's a deterrence mission, whether it's a peacekeeping mission, whether it's an augmentation mission, or a protection mission, there are different options. And of course, different countries perceive this issue differently," she said.

Kallas also noted that one of the topics being discussed today is the Franco-British contingent and the EU training mission to train the Ukrainian military.

“This is one of the topics we are going to discuss today. I mean, putting forward what else the EU training mission can do. Should we expand the mandate, should we do different things, should we also discuss where to conduct this training. For now, we have managed to maintain the mandate and we are updating the mission taking into account Ukrainian needs… As for any ‘reassuring force’, we also need to know what it is really about. Is it deterrence? Is it monitoring? Is it peacekeeping? Also, what is our goal? And it very much depends on whether we will have peace or not. So far, we do not have peace,” Kallas said.

In turn, the Swedish Minister of Defense stated that clarity about the objectives and nature of the mission is a key condition: "I think it would be useful if there was clarity about what this mission would entail and what it would entail: peacekeeping, deterrence or reassurance. I think the scope would depend on and be based on the objectives."

On April 10, the first meeting of defense ministers from 30 countries in the "coalition of the willing" format to ensure long-term peace in Ukraine, initiated in February by France and Britain, is taking place at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

On March 27, leaders of 27 countries gathered in Paris for a summit to discuss guarantees for Ukraine after a possible ceasefire, including the possible deployment of "coalition of the willing" forces on its territory.

French President Emmanuel Macron said that Western contingents in Ukraine, proposed by a "coalition of the willing" led by France and Britain, will not be deployed on the front line, but will operate at strategic points in the peace zone as security support forces.

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