European leaders renew discussions on sending troops to Ukraine amid concerns Trump will end support — Le Monde

Some European countries have once again begun discussing the possibility of sending their own troops or private military companies to Ukraine, the French newspaper Le Monde reported on Monday.

The discussions were reportedly prompted by Donald Trump’s U.S. presidential election victory and concerns among European leaders that he could end Washington’s military support to Ukraine.

Le Monde notes that in February, when French President Emmanuel Macron publicly mentioned the possibility of European countries deploying troops to Ukraine, it sparked “strong opposition” from some countries, primarily Germany. Nonetheless, these discussions have reportedly begun again in recent weeks, including during U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s visit to France on November 11.

“Discussions are ongoing between Great Britain and France regarding defense cooperation, including the creation of a coalition strike force in Europe focused on Ukraine and European security as a whole,” a British military source told the newspaper.

Putin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Monday that the Kremlin is unsure how accurate Le Monde’s report is. “Such ideas have been voiced from various European capitals in the past. But various counterarguments have also been presented against this idea. So there is no unity among the Europeans on this issue, though some hotheads are emerging,” the radio station Mayak quoted Peskov as saying.