France invites several countries to join coalition for training soldiers in Ukraine
French President Emmanuel Macron (Getty Images)
France invited its partners to join a coalition to train the military in Ukraine. The appeal was sent to several countries, according to Welt.
Last week, the Chief of the French General Staff, Thierry Burkhard, sent letters to about 10 countries with a proposal to join a multinational coalition to train the military in Ukraine. The letters were sent to the Baltic states, Poland, Denmark, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and the United States.
According to European diplomats, French President Emmanuel Macron is trying to promote the idea of training the military in Ukraine within the framework of the existing EUMAM mission. But in this case, the mission's mandate needs to be changed.
Many countries oppose this idea, in particular, fearing that there is a risk of drawing the West into a war.
However, EU diplomatic circles also say that there are good reasons to train Ukrainian soldiers on the territory of Ukraine. The military would be more adaptable and would not need to travel abroad for training.
Background
Earlier, France said it was ready to send its military instructors to Ukraine to train soldiers. Russia has already threatened France over the idea of sending instructors.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that Paris would like to create a coalition with partners to train the Ukrainian military on their territory.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy supported Macron's proposal.
