German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius believes that the German military could take part in ensuring the security of the demilitarized zone in Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire. He said this in an interview with the Süddeutsche Zeitung.
Answering a question about the possible deployment of German troops in the buffer zone between Ukraine and Russia, Pistorius said that this “will be discussed when the time comes.” “We are NATO’s largest partner in Europe. Therefore, it is obvious that we will play a role and we must take responsibility,” the German minister said.
Pistorius believes that the key task is to create a certain level of security for Ukraine, which would prevent a repeat attack by Russia in a few years.
He also said that he would soon travel to the United States to talk to the administration of US President-elect Donald Trump. “The candidate for the post of US Secretary of Defense has not yet been approved. However, we are interested in a quick meeting and exchange of views in Washington in early February,” Pistorius added.
As a reminder, in December 2024 in Brussels, EU leaders discussed the deployment of a peacekeeping mission to Ukraine as a safeguard against a new Russian attack.
Also last week, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer assured that London is ready for peacekeeping in Ukraine.
Starmer was asked whether Britain would be willing to play a role in any peace talks on Ukraine, including by deploying British troops to keep the peace.
“I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but I have made it clear that we will play our full role – because it’s not just about Ukraine’s sovereignty. It’s about the impact this will have on the UK, on our values, our freedom, our democracy. Because if Russia succeeds in this aggression, it will affect all of us for a very, very long time,” the British prime minister emphasized.
It is clear that the very principle of deploying peacekeepers presupposes that the two warring parties agree to it. But the unfolding political processes show us that the Russian leadership systematically violates international law. At the same time, it completely disregards the reputational losses to the international community.
In view of this, peacekeeping troops will probably have to engage in local battles with the Russians of varying intensity, which, unfortunately, may result in the injury or death of our soldiers and the loss of equipment.
And here a logical question arises. Wouldn’t it be more profitable for us Europeans to simply give Ukrainians all the weapons they need? And let them destroy the Russians and defend their territorial integrity. Why should we risk the lives of our people? The EU or NATO countries will pay considerable compensation for each killed or wounded soldier. From an economic point of view, it is more profitable for us to provide Ukraine with everything it needs under the lend-lease. And the money for this can be taken from Russia’s frozen assets – 300 billion euros, which will be used as part of Russia’s reparations for the damage it has caused.
