Defense Ministers of UK and France to Hold Meeting to Address Ukraine Situation

April 10, 2025 TruthUSA

The UK, France, and the other European countries involved in the ‘coalition of the willing’ are still hopeful for security guarantees from the United States.

Defense ministers from approximately 30 countries are gathering at NATO’s headquarters in Brussels on Thursday to discuss potential troop deployment in Ukraine to oversee a future peace agreement with Russia.

The meeting of the so-called “coalition of the willing” follows the recent visit by senior British and French military officials, including UK defense staff chief Adm. Sir Tony Radakin, to Kyiv.

The United States, which is working to mediate a cease-fire and a lasting peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, will not be attending Thursday’s meeting.

British Defense Secretary John Healey and French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu will be hosting the meeting.

The UK Ministry of Defense released a statement ahead of the meeting, with Healey expected to emphasize the need to maintain pressure on Putin and strengthen support for Ukraine in both the ongoing conflict and the pursuit of peace.

“Our goal is to empower Ukraine to safeguard its sovereignty and prevent future Russian aggression,” the statement read.

The UK, France, and the other European countries involved in the “coalition of the willing” are still seeking security assurances from the United States for a potential peacekeeping mission in Ukraine, a commitment that President Donald Trump has been hesitant to provide.

Trump has been negotiating a deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the US to benefit from Ukraine’s rare mineral mining.

He believes that this deal, along with the presence of US mining companies in Ukraine, would serve as a deterrent to Russia.

“We will be on the ground, ensuring automatic security as nobody would dare to provoke our people,” Trump stated on Feb. 26.

However, Zelenskyy has expressed reluctance to finalize an agreement regarding his country’s resources without firm security guarantees from the US.

Last month, Zelenskyy emphasized the need for security guarantees to achieve a “real, fair peace” in Kyiv.

Zelenskyy mentioned that the absence of security guarantees for Ukraine allowed Russia to occupy Crimea and launch attacks in the Donbas region years ago, eventually leading to a full-scale invasion.

On March 20, Trump announced that the mineral deal would be signed soon.

During last year’s election campaign, Trump promised to end the conflict in Ukraine, but he has faced challenges in doing so.

Recent negotiations between the US and Russia on March 24 struggled to establish a 30-day limited cease-fire agreement that would temporarily halt some hostilities.

Both Moscow and Kyiv have disagreed on the terms of such a deal, failing to reach a consensus with the US on the specifics of the cease-fire.

An initial agreement, supported by both Ukraine and Russia, on March 18 aimed to halt attacks on civilian energy infrastructure for 30 days.

However, the deal was violated shortly after, with each country accusing the other of breaching the truce by sabotaging an oil facility in a region of Russia under Ukrainian control.

Nevertheless, European countries, led by the UK and France, are continuing efforts to outline a peacekeeping force of up to 30,000 troops to be deployed to Ukraine to ensure peace and deter potential aggression from either side.

‘Credible Security Assurances’

The official statement from the UK Ministry of Defense stated: “The prime minister [Keir Starmer] and defense secretary have stressed the need for credible security assurances to deter Russian aggression and achieve lasting peace in Ukraine.”

“The UK has taken the lead in international support to assist Ukraine in the current conflict and to place them in the strongest possible position to secure peace.”

Representatives from approximately 50 countries will convene at NATO’s headquarters to seek military assistance for Ukraine on Friday.

The meeting will be co-led by Healey and German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is not expected to participate.

Image taken from a Ukrainian drone of an incident in which Russian troops allegedly killed surrendering Ukrainian soldiers in the village of Piatykhatky in Ukraine on March 13, 2025. (Ukraine military/European defense officials via AP) — Image taken from a Ukrainian drone of an incident in which Russian troops allegedly killed surrendering Ukrainian soldiers in the village of Piatykhatky in Ukraine on March 13, 2025. Ukraine military/European defense officials via AP

These discussions in Brussels coincide with Ukraine accusing Russia of executing four Ukrainian prisoners of war—soldiers who had surrendered—in an incident on March 13.

Ukraine has presented drone footage showing soldiers with Russian uniform insignia shooting Ukrainians outside a damaged house in the village of Piatykhatky, near Zaporizhzhia in southern Ukraine.

Yurii Bielousov, head of Ukraine’s prosecutor general war crimes department, stated: “Regardless of the peace agreement, Ukraine is not prepared to overlook events that occurred on our territory. The specifics of accountability are yet to be determined.”

However, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov asserted that Russia treats surrendering Ukrainian troops in compliance with international law, rejecting claims of killing prisoners of war and emphasizing that it is not the Russian policy.

Peskov reiterated allegations that Ukraine fabricated atrocities purportedly committed by Russian forces in Bucha, near Kyiv, in the initial months of the war in 2022.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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