Finnish President on Ukraine peace: Coalition troops could be deployed after ceasefire
Photo: Alexander Stubb, President of Finland (Getty Images)
Finnish President Alexander Stubb stated that troops from the "coalition of the willing" could be deployed to Ukraine, but several conditions must first be met, informs France 24.
"A lot of people are getting their terms and timing mixed up here. So we need to look at this in two phases," the Finnish president said.
First phase
According to Stubb, the first phase involves a ceasefire, while the second stage is a formal peace agreement.
"So for the ceasefire, you need some kind of a reassurance. That means that you can help in the air, on the sea, perhaps on land. That's the type of planning that our military staff are doing right now. And the political decisions that we take here in Paris are part of that first phase," he explained.
Second phase
The second stage, Stubb emphasized, is when peace is maintained and agreed upon.
"That's when you put in crisis management troops or peacekeeping troops on the basis of an international mandate. So, these are two quite separate things. The ceasefire is still a state of war, whereas a peace agreement, that's when peace begins," he said.
"Coalition of the willing" on Ukraine
On March 27, France hosted another summit of the "coalition of the willing," a group of countries that have agreed to support Ukraine in its full-scale war against Russia. Among the initiatives discussed by allies is the potential deployment of troops to Ukraine.
Earlier, Stubb stated that Finland currently sees no reason to send its peacekeeping forces to Ukraine during the initial stage of a ceasefire.
